Secrets Held By Paradise
by gum tree betty
Summary: The team races to against time to find a missing detective.


The two boys cheered encouragement as their friend sped along the wet dirt road, sliding and fishtailing around the blind corners, tossing his passengers from side to side. Reaching for the bottle of beer, he took a large swig, lowering the bottle down just in time to see the dark sedan as he slid around the corner on the wrong side of the road.

Danny Williams swerved in an attempt to avoid a collision but the rain slick mud sent his own car into a deadly spin and it careened down the heavily wooded embankment, tossing him wildly about like a rag doll as it crushed and bounced against trees and hidden rocks before coming to a violent stop at the bottom of the steep incline.

He never heard the other car's engine stop or the sound of the undergrowth being trampled as the car's occupants slid and tumbled down the embankment to where his car now rested.

Three frightened figures had huddled around the shattered car's remains, none had been willing to touch the bloodied and still figure of the victim still trapped inside. Each terrified teenager agreeing that he could not have even survived. Frightened by the implications of killing someone in an accident, each boy silently agreed to return to their own car and hide any trace of what had happened. This was a rarely used road and if they kept their cool no one would ever know.

They turned and hurried up the embankment; carefully screening the damaged undergrowth at the top of the road with a screen of branches, until they were satisfied that no one would ever realize that a car now lay at the bottom of the ravine. The steady rain assisted in the clean up, leaving little evidence of the skid marks on the muddy surface. Quickly getting back into their own car, each boy tried to forget the man they had left behind.

Xxxx

Walter Stuart glanced anxiously over his shoulder at the closed courtroom doors before he turned his attention to the dark haired lead detective beside him. "Williams is cutting it close, Steve" He hissed angrily, "If he doesn't show soon, I'm going to have to ask for another continuance. That means risking having this case thrown out!"

McGarrett sighed as he turned towards the door, willing it to open and his tardy detective to rush in. This case had been plagued with controversy and problems with accusations of police brutality in obtaining confessions, to witnesses refusing to testify because they feared retaliation. The case now depended on the testimony of his youngest detective and Second-In-Command Danny Williams.

"Easy, Walter, easy. He must have been held up doing the witness interviews on the Holloway case." McGarrett tried to soothe the agitated District Attorney, "I'll slip out and give the office a ring and find out how much longer he will be."

"Just get him here, Steve. Without his testimony our case flies out of the window." Stuart grunted in annoyance, "I'll try and stall."

Patting the older man on the shoulder in acknowledgement of his words, McGarrett quietly stood and left the courtroom and headed to the phone box located just outside the room. Picking up the receiver, he dialed the familiar number to Hawaii Five O office, only waiting a moment for his call to be answered. It only took a couple of minutes to discover from his secretary that the absent detective had neither returned nor even reported in from finishing the witness interviews in the Holloway case.

With a terse order for the detective to report immediately to the courthouse upon his return, McGarrett hung up the phone and slowly rubbed his hand over his face as he prepared to face the wrath of the District Attorney when he informed him that Danno had not yet returned from conducting interviews.

"Where ever Williams is and whatever he is doing, Steve, I hope he has got a damn good reason for not showing up in court!" Stuart growled as he snatched up the file on the desk in front of him and shoved it into his briefcase, slamming the thin case closed with a resonating bang. "I'm not surprised that Judge Evans refused another continuance. This was our chance to finally close the book on Suttor and Williams blew it! Let's hope one day, we get another chance!" Stuart huffed as he turned and stormed out of the courthouse.

McGarrett released a loud sigh of exasperation as he watched the other man leave before he followed. Danno had known how important this case was, had been fully aware that he was to be called onto the witness stand this afternoon but had neglected to show or even to report in. He agreed with Stuart- where ever and whatever Danno was doing, he had better have a damn excellent explanation about why he neglected to show up for the court case!

May looked up as the office door opened and McGarrett rushed into the room. One quick glance at the detective's face warned her that Danny had not bypassed the palace and gone directly to the courthouse.

"Has he reported in yet?' McGarrett growled as he cast a quick glance into Danny's empty cubicle.

"No Boss." May answered as she stood and followed the furious man into his office, "I've been trying to raise him on the radio but he's not responding."

"When did he last report in?" McGarrett demanded as a small knot of fear cooled some of the heat of his anger. This behavior was so out of character for his Second-In-Command. He knew that Danno would never intentionally miss a court case.

"He radioed in about three hours ago, Steve. He said he had just finished the interview with Colin Ferguson and he just had interview Hannah Wilson before he headed back." May answered quietly, adding as an afterthought "He commented that it was raining quite heavily over the Pali."

McGarrett nodded, "Do we know if he made it to that interview?"

"Chin is checking now," May informed the lead detective. "Miss Wilson has no phone so Chin has gone out to see her."

"And Kono?"

"He's worried about Danny not reporting in so he headed over to HPD to make some discreet inquiries and find out if anyone has seen Danny in the last couple of hours." She answered. "He didn't think you would want to let the media get wind about the possibility that Danny is missing."

"Mahalo, Luv." McGarrett said softly. May nodded and turned to leave but turned back. "What happened with the Suttor case?"

"The judge threw it out. Without Danno's testimony there wasn't enough evidence." Steve answered

"You don't think that…something… happened to Danny to stop him from testifying, do you Boss?"

McGarrett shook his head, "I don't think that Sutton is stupid enough to take that sort of a risk but I'm not going to ignore the possibility either." He smiled weakly, "We'll find Danno, I promise!"

May nodded silently. "I know we will, Boss." She agreed quietly as she turned and left the office, closing the door behind her.

McGarrett sighed and reached for the phone, dialing HPD dispatch and requesting a patch to Williams' car.

The soft chatter of voices calling his name slowly drew Dan from the darkness that had held him so tightly since the terrifying ride down the mountains edge. He moaned in agony as awareness began to return more fully. Pain seemed to invade his whole body, a white- hot rush of agony that robbed him of his breath.

The soft commanding call of his name cut through his misery and he moaned as he forced his eyes open, blinking in the strange green twilight as he tried to bring the blurry shapes that surrounded him into focus.

"McGarrett to Williams. McGarrett to Williams. Danno answer me!"

"Steve!" The soft name was barely spoken above a whisper as the injured man looked around in confusion, unable to see his mentor and closest friend but hearing his voice.

"McGarrett to Williams. Danno pick up!"

"Steve, help me!" The soft plea faded into silence as the darkness closed over the young detective again as his boss' voice again called his name.

Xxxx

Hearing the office door open, May glanced up hopefully. Her heart sunk as she realized it was not the detective that she had hoped it would be but she quickly covered her disappointment.

Carrying the foiled wrapped package of freshly baked mango bread that Hannah Wilson had insisted that he should share with the rest of the small team of detectives, Chin Ho Kelly brushed off droplets off rain from his coat as he entered the office. Placing the treat on May's desk, he asked quietly. "Is he back yet?"

May shook her head, "No." She whispered softly, "Kono got back from HPD a couple of minutes ago. No one has seen or heard from Danny in hours. How did you go with Miss Wilson?"

"Danny interviewed her a few hours ago and left." Chin answered as he glanced towards the closed Koa door. "Is Steve in?"

May nodded. "He's been trying to raise Danny on the radio. He asked for you to go straight in when you returned."

Chin nodded and headed towards McGarrett's office to give him his report. He stole a quick glance into the darkening cubicle closest to McGarrett's, his chest tightened at the sight. He sighed and knocked on the closed door, not waiting for an invitation before he entered his boss' domain. He inwardly cringed as he saw the two men in the room look expectantly as he entered the room and watched their faces fall as they realized that he was not the man they were hoping to see.

"Miss Wilson confirmed that Danny interviewed her about one pm and left shortly afterwards." He began his report before McGarrett could speak. "She remembers the time because he declined a cup of tea, saying that he needed to return to Honolulu to appear in court." He finished as he sat in the white chair beside the chair Kono occupied.

McGarrett rose from his seat and began to pace, clicking his fingers as he walked. "So we know Danno left Miss Wilson at one pm. He was due in court just after two. The last time he reported in was twelve thirty when he told May he had the last interview to finish. Dispatch has confirmed that there has been no radio contact from Danno since then. What could have happened? Why hasn't he reported in?"

Chin and Kono frowned at the question, both trying to come up with possible scenarios to explain their colleague's mysterious disappearance.

"Maybe he was forced off the road and grabbed by someone wanting to stop him from testifying today?" Chin hypothesized.

McGarrett stopped pacing as he considered and rejected the idea. "If Danno was forced over, he would have radioed for assistance. There was no radio call."

"Maybe someone tricked him into stopping, Boss, " Kono suggested, "waved him over for assistance and then made their move."

"But that would mean that somebody would have to have known where Danny would be." Chin challenged, "So unless he was being followed, that would have been almost impossible, Bruddah. It was a spur of the moment decision by Danny to finish the interviews today."

McGarrett nodded his agreement, adding, "Danno would have noticed a tail. Doesn't Hannah Wilson live on the old Pali Road?" At Chin's nod of confirmation, Steve continued, "That is a narrow and isolated stretch of road, heaps of winding corners. It would be almost impossible to tail someone there; you would lose them too easily."

"Maybe Danny had an accident. It's been raining fairly steadily in the Pali most of the day. The old Pali Road gets quite slippery in the wet." Kono suggested, the mere suggestion churned his stomach. "If he's hurt than maybe he can't radio."

Chin shook his head. "Thought of that, Kono." He admitted quietly. "I drove slowly along the old Pali Road twice, checking for any signs of an accident. There is nothing to indicate anything has happened - no broken brushes, no broken rails. Couldn't check for skid marks, the rain was washing away my own tracks in the mud. I also checked with the hospital and HPD on the way in. No reported accidents this afternoon at all."

Steve began to pace again. "Okay," he finally said, "I think we need to work on the assumption that somewhere between Hannah Wilson's home and the palace, Danno was snatched. First I want an ABP issued on Danno and his car- Priority One!

Chin, I want you to check out anyone that has threatened Danno recently, anyone who may have a grudge against him, recent parolees etc. Get some of the guys at HPD to give you a hand."

"On it Boss." Chin answered as he rose from his chair and hurried from the room.

"Kono, I want a full background check carried out on anyone that Suttor has been in contact with since his arrest." Steve ordered. "Telephone the warden and check who his visitors have been, any phone calls he has made and which prisoners he has been associating with in prison. Don't leave any rock unturned."

"Right, Steve." Kono answered as he stood and also left the room.

McGarrett rubbed his face and stared out of the open Lanai door into the falling darkness of the oncoming night. "I don't know what has happened, Aikane," He whispered, "but we are going to find you. Just hang on."

Xxxx

Glancing across the table, Lani Malahini silently watched her youngest son slowly push his dinner around his plate with his fork. She sighed but remained silent, knowing to comment or ask again what was trouble him would only result in another argument. Her son was normally a happy, easy going young man but since returning after spending the day with friends he was jumpy and irritable. .

Pursing her lips closely, she watched him for a few more minutes wondering if she should again question what was troubling him and risk his wrath. Pushing her plate away, she leaned across and gently covered his hand with hers as she whispered, "What's the matter, Kai? Somethin' happen today that upset you? An argument with your friends maybe?"

Biting his bottom lip in an attempt to stop it trembling, the young Hawaiian teenager slowly looked up into his mother's eyes. He swallowed hard trying to decide if he should tell her about the accident that they had caused but hesitated. Shaking his head he murmured, "I don't feel well tonight. I think I will go to bed." Standing, he kissed her lightly on the check, before he turned and hurried to his room.

Shutting his bedroom door firmly behind him, he leaned back against the cool wood as the tears began to fall. He closed his eyes as he tried to control the soft sobs that escaped. He could see the other car as it swerved to miss them, he watched it in his mind's eye as it skidded uncontrollable in the mud and disappeared over the edge of the cliff. His eyes snapped open and he swallowed back the bile that rose in the back of his throat as he remembered climbing down to the wreckage and seeing the bloodied body of the young man slumped lifelessly over the steering wheel.

The sob he had been struggling to contain escaped and he flung himself onto the bed and cried into his pillow. They had been drinking and driving and had killed someone! They had each sworn each other to secrecy, covering up what they had done.

He cried harder as the image of the young man came back into his mind. What if he hadn't died? What if he was still there trapped and injured? Oh God, what had they done?

Sitting alone at the table, Lani stared at the closed door of her son's bedroom. She thought that she could hear him crying and wanted to go in there and comfort him but knew her presence would not be welcomed. She sighed; life had become so hard since Kimo had passed away. She brushed back the tears that threatened to fall as she slowly rose and began to clear away the plates, hoping Kai would open up and tell her what was wrong.

Taking small measured breaths, Danny Williams remained as still as he could. The pain that had greeted his return to consciousness slowly receded to a more tolerable level of agony, allowing the young detective to think beyond the pain. Slowly the memory of what had happened returned and he slowly opened his eyes, groaning in misery as the soft muted light hurt his eyes and increased the painful throbbing in his head. A warm wetness trickled down the side of his face and he realized that he was bleeding. Swallowing hard he tried to ignore the nausea and dizziness as he slowly pushed himself off the steering wheel and more upright against his seat.

He gasped aloud as the movement caused his left arm, shoulder and ribs to erupt in a bolt of fiery pain, robbing him of his breath as he struggled to keep the darkness that lurked on the fringes of his consciousness away. He sat motionless for several minutes and closed his eyes. "Okay Williams, I think it is a good bet that you have a concussion, broken arm and…" He moaned as he drew in a little deeper breath, "Definitely broken ribs!" He added silently to his list as he tried to control his breathing.

Forcing himself remain conscious, he waited until the pain eased enough for him to continue to assess how seriously he was hurt. He reopened his eyes and slowly and carefully looked down, attempting to move his head as little as possible. The dash of the car seemed to be pressed down onto his lap. He frowned as it took him a few moments to realize that his legs were trapped and there did not seem to be any pain.

Looking back up, Danny slowly began to take notice of his surroundings. Through the spider webbed crack window, he could make out the blurred outline of a tree against which the car seemed to be resting. Slowly turning his head, he slowly peered out the darkening shapes of ferns and trees the seemed to press up right against the car. The sensation that he was completed hidden by the thick undergrowth of the rainforest momentarily panicked him and he cried out in pain as he tried to look behind him to confirm his predicament.

"Dispatch to Williams. HPD Dispatch to Williams. Please respond!"

The soft voice startled him and he slowly turned around staring at the radio that was just within his reach. He laughed a little hysterically as he realized that help was so close by, reaching for the mic he ignored the agony that the small movement caused. He fumbled and almost dropped it before he managed to grab it more firmly with his right hand. Bringing the mic to his lips he carefully depressed the button and forced enough air into his lungs to manage a weak whisper. "This… is Williams." He panted breathlessly. "I…need…assis…tance… Old…Pali Road…acci…dent."

The small message exhausted him and his hand holding the mic to drop back down onto the seat as the darkness that had lurked at the edges of his consciousness reclaimed him,

Officer Tommy Ono frowned, uncertain whether he had heard a transmission or just static in response to his last radio call to Danny Williams. He pressed the send button again, "Dispatch to Williams. Is that you Danny? Please repeat your last transmission." Glancing around as he spoke he spied around Duke Lukela near the door. Signaling the police sergeant over, he again repeated his call. "Dispatch to Williams. Please repeat your last transmission."

The older Hawaiian officer, who often worked closely with the Five O team, stood silently behind him, waiting for the young detective to respond.

"HPD to Williams, please respond!" Tommy repeated, his desperation to get the other man to answer his call evident in his voice. Both men waited with held breaths until it became obvious that there would be no response.

Turning back towards the HPD sergeant, Tommy said, "I'm sure it was Danny. The transmission was weak but I'm sure I heard his voice."

Patting the younger man on the shoulder, Duke nodded. "Keep trying to raise him. I'll let McGarrett know that we have had a possible response."

Tommy nodded and turned back to the radio, again requesting Williams to respond as Duke hurried from the room.

Xxxx

Slowly hanging up the phone, Kono sighed loudly and closed the open file in front of him. There was nothing to link Suttor to Danny's disappearance. Everyone he had spoken with, from Suttor's lawyers to the warden, all said the same thing, Suttor had been confident on getting off the charges with an acquittal, he was not concerned at all about the detective's evidence. Suttor had made no threats against the missing detective or even spoken about Danny's upcoming testimony confident that the prosecution did not have a solid enough case against him.

He pushed his chair back as he slowly came to his feet and headed McGarrett's office with the information.

"Hey Kono,"

He turned towards the HPD sergeant's voice and waited for the older man to catch up.

"Is Steve in? Think we might have news on Danny!" Duke announced smiling at the broad Hawaiian detective.

"He's in his office. I sure hope you have something, Bruddah! I just came up empty!" Kono answered quietly as the two men reached the door and knocked. "And da Boss is demanding answers."

Any more conversation between the two was cut off of they heard McGarrett call for them to enter.

Placing down the chalk he had used to plot the timeline for Danny's last known movements on the black board, Steve turned and watched Kono and Duke enter the office.

"Steve, we have just received a possible radio transmission from Danny!" Duke announced as he entered the room. "The signal was weak and the voice gabbled but we are certain it was Danny."

McGarrett frowned, "If the signal was weak and garbled, how can you be certain it was Danno?"

Duke blushed slightly as he quietly admitted, "HPD are working on the possibility that Danny's disappearance is a possible accident. It's been raining fairly steadily up in the Pali and the roads can be dangerous. I have a couple of units in the area checking for any signs of an accident and I ordered all HPD personal to use channel two on the radios and kept channel one open to try and contact Danny. The radio call came in on channel one Steve!' Duke hurriedly explained. "Tommy Ono is monitoring the radio. He's positive it was Danny's voice."

Before Steve could ask any more questions, his office door opened and May rushed in, "Boss, there has been a leak to the media about Danny's disappearance!" she announced as she hurried over to the small portable television and switched it on. The three police officers and the small secretary stood watching as the reporter reported about the suspected abduction of the Second-In-Command of Hawaii Five O. The reporter announced that the abduction was suspected to be linked to the Suttor case, citing an unidentified source."

McGarrett growled loudly. "Damn reporters. I want to find out who leaked Danno's disappearance to the media!" He spun towards his Hawaiian detective. "Any possibility the unidentified source is correct?"

Kono shook his head. "Not that I could find, Boss. Warden said that the only visitors Suttor has seen in jail have been his lawyers. He has been on a complete lockdown since the Simpson girl disappeared." McGarrett nodded his head, remembering the still unsolved disappearance of their lead witness against Suttor as Kono continued. "His lawyer claims that Suttor was confident in being acquitted regardless of Danny's testimony. Claims that Suttor was not even interested in knowing what Danny might even say."

"Maybe because he knew Danno would not even be around to testify!" McGarrett challenged stabbing the air with his finger.

"He didn't even know when Danny was scheduled in court Steve. The lawyer claims that he was that confident of getting acquitted that he no longer took a real interest in the case. Just showed up in court 'cause he had to!" Kono countered.

"Steve, if it was Danny on the radio, than it's a possibility that he has had an accident." Duke interrupted softly. "We could be wasting valuable time not looking for him." Steve turned and stared at the older HPD sergeant as Duke continued, "Gut instinct is telling me Danny is hurt and needing our help." Duke concluded as he glanced out at the darkness of the night, unable to explain the feeling he felt any better than that.

McGarrett sighed and slowly rubbed his hand over his face. "Okay," he agreed, "We continue to try and contact him on the radio and have patrols checking for any indications of any accidents. His last confirmed contact was taking a statement from a witness on old Pali Road, have patrols check the area as well as the Pali Highway itself. "

Duke nodded and left the office as McGarrett turned back to Kono. "I'm not dropping the theory this is an abduction case either," he announced quietly. "I want you to continue checking out Suttor's acquaintances. See what type of alibis they have. Also I want a tail on Suttor. I want to know who he talks to and what he does tonight!"

"Done Boss!" Kono answered as he turned to leave the room, only to be halted by Steve's voice.

"And Kono. I WANT to find out who leaked Danno's disappearance to the media and why!"

"On it Boss." Kono acknowledged as he hurried from the room.

McGarrett watched him leave before reaching for his coat and stepping out into the outer office. He turned on the small police scanner, making sure it was on channel one as he turned up the volume. He stood a moment listening to Tommy Ono's repeated requests for Danno to respond before picking up the mic and making his own request for his detective to respond. A strange burst of static answered him and he ordered Tommy to continue with the transmission.

Hesitating a moment he turned and stared into the dark cubicle before he turned and moved quickly towards the outer office door. "If you need me for anything, you can reach me on the radio- channel two. I'm going to pay Mr. Suttor a visit." he called to his secretary as he hurried past. "Keep an ear on the radio. If Danno responds, I want to be told immediately!"

May looked up. "Okay Boss." she answered as McGarrett rushed out of the door.

Danny slowly opened his eyes and blinked in confusion at the darkness that surround him. He shivered uncontrollably as light rain laden breeze blew through the shattered passenger side window. The tremors that wracked him increased the pain, causing him to groan in misery.

"McGarrett to Williams. McGarrett to Williams. If you can hear me Danno, pick up!"

"Steve?" Reaching for the mic, he painfully lifted it to his lips, carefully depressing the send button as he drew in a slightly deeper breath, ignoring the fiery pain it caused as he whispered. "Steve,… help… me! Please!…Acci…dent…Old Pali" The words died on his lips as he struggled to breath. He allowed his hand holding the mic to drop back down as he silently mouthed, "Steve!"

Kai rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He couldn't lose the image of the young man slumped over the steering wheel, trapped in the car at the bottom of the embankment, out of his mind. The question of whether they were wrong about the man being dead continued to plague him. He sighed and sat up, pulling on his shoes. He had to check! Opening his bedside table, he fumbled around searching for the torch. Finding it, he quickly checked it still worked before he tucked it up under his coat and walked to the door.

Quietly opening the door, he quickly glanced out spotting his mother sitting in the living room watching the local news. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, he smiled and walked over to her, bending down to kiss her cheek as he spoke, "I'm going out for a while. Want to get some fresh air. Can I borrow your car?"

Startled by the sudden change in Kai's mood, Lani glanced up at her son. "I thought you not feeling well?"

Kai shrugged, "Feeling better now. Can I borrow the car or can't I?"

Lani sighed, knowing that her refusal would just cause another argument. "Keys are in da car. You be gone long?"

"Not too long!" Kai answered as he turned to leave. "Aloha!"

"Aloha." Lani answered quietly back, watching as the door closed behind him. Turning back to the news, she picked up her cup of tea and tried to concentrate on the news but her mind wandered back to her son's strange mood swings as the reporters spoke about the missing Five O detective.

Slowing the car to a slow crawl, Kai inched his way along the muddy road. The darkness made it difficult to locate where the accident happened, Kai drove to the area with little hesitation. Although he had been drinking when the accident had happened, he doubted he would ever forget the precise location where it occurred. It did not take him long to locate the very spot where they had dragged branches and bushes to the edge of the road to hide the damage the car caused to the undergrowth as it plummeted over the edge.

Stopping the car, he sat motionless for a few moments, attempting to work up the courage to return to the wreckage and check if the man was really dead. He swallowed hard as he opened the door and climbed out, switching on the torch as he slowly made his way to the edge of the road and glanced down into the darkness of the rainforest below.

He pushed his way through the man made screen of branches and began to descend down the hill, slipping and sliding in the mud, clutching at branches and undergrowth in an attempt to keep his balance, with only the light from his torch to guide him. Finally reaching the wreckage, he stood staring at it for several seconds before he edged his way closer, shining the torch at the windows. He jumped in surprise as the figure in the car moved and turned towards the light.

"S…St…eve?"

Xxxx

Leaning back in his chair with his feet resting on the desk, Col Suttor looked through half closed eyes and yawned theatrically. He saw the lead detective bristle at his action and smiled. Slowly he lifted his feet from the desk placing them back on the floor as he came to a more upright sitting position, as he quietly stated. "I've told you McGarrett that I had nothin' to do with your boy's disappearance. Why would I need to? You cop's didn't have nothin' that could stick. No way I was going to be convicted!"

"Danny Williams' testimony was going to bury you in that jail for a very long time Suttor and you knew it!" McGarrett growled angrily as he moved closer to the desk, towering over the suspected mobster. "You knew without his testimony that you would walk free, so you arranged to make sure he never made it to the courthouse today."

"Oh, come on McGarrett, next you're gunna say is that I had him fitted with cement boots and dropped him into the ocean for shark food!"

"Did you?"

The question startled the mobster and he began to laugh, "Oh come on McGarrett, you really have been watching too many gangster movies!" He chuckled before sobering and adding, "I don't know what has happened to your missing cop or where he is but I do know my rights! Next time, cop, that you barge into my office and want to question me, you better have a warrant! Now get out of here or I'll call a cop and have you charged with trespassing!"

"Count on it!" McGarrett promised heatedly as he turned and walked towards the door. Reaching the door, he turned back, "If I find out that you have had anything to do with Williams' disappearance…"

"You're not threatening me, are you McGarrett?" Suttor asked leaning forward, his arms folded on the desk.

"Just say, it's more like a promise!" McGarrett smiled grimly.

Suttor grinned, "Oh, by the way, Supercop, you had better warn any of the boys in blue that you have placed on my tail for the night that they will need lots of coffee in their thermoses. I have a lot of work to catch up with here at the office, so I'm not planning to leave here until late!"

"Setting up your alibi, Suttor?" McGarrett asked sarcastically before he turned and left the office.

Standing, Suttor walked to his office door and closed it quietly before returning back to his chair. Sitting back down in the chair, his fingertips began an unconscious drum on the desktop as he thought about the conversation he had just had with McGarrett.

The furious detective had charged into his office with the theory he was behind Williams' disappearance and had hinted that the missing detective's testimony could put him away for life. He had to find McGarrett's boy and make sure that would never happen. Reaching for the phone, he picked it up and dialed, waiting several rings before his call was answered. "Joey, I have a job for you! I want you to find that missing Five O cop Williams and shut him up permanently!" He closed his eyes and sighed in exasperation as the man at the other end of the phone spoke before he continued, "Yes, I know the cop is already missing but I want to make sure he stays that way. Now just find him and shut him up permanently!" He ordered slamming down the phone.

Staring at the wall in front of him he knew he had no other choice than to order a hit on Williams, he couldn't risk McGarrett being right about the cop's testimony!

Squinting into the bright light that shone onto his face, Danny tried to make out the figure that stood only feet away from the car. Steve was here. He knew Steve would find him. He wasn't sure if dispatch had heard his calls for assistance, Tommy had continued to hail him even after he had responded but Steve had been listening! "S…St…eve?"

The figure remained motionless, watching him for several long minutes before moving away, ignoring him as he tried to call out again. Exhausted by the effort of calling out, Danny allowed his head to drop back onto the headrest and closed his eyes. Maybe the light and figure were just caused by his fear and imagination; maybe there was no one there. He had really believed that Steve had come. He had really hoped that he had finally been found but he silently admitted to himself that the chances of being found were slim.

Moving away from the car, Kai turned off the torch and stood silently in the darkness for several minutes, watching the dark shape of the man in the car. The driver was still alive. He had seen him move and heard him call out. He chewed on his bottom lip, uncertain of what to do. A soft groan of pain drew his attention back to the car and he sighed. He had to try and get the young man out, he just couldn't walk away.

Switching back on the torch, he hurried back to the driver's side of the car, shining the light on the injured man, wincing as he saw the blood that covered his face as he whispered, "It's okay, Bruddah, I'm going to get you out."

Danny opened his eyes and blinked, not quite believing that he was no longer alone. "Steve?"

"No Bruddah, I'm not Steve, I'm Kai. It's okay, I'm going to get you out!" Kai told the injured man again as he grabbed the door and tried to pull it open it open. The door refused to budge and after several attempts, Kai gave up trying it and ran around to the passenger door. It only took two strong tugs before the door opened and Kai climbed into the damage vehicle.

He swallowed back down the bile that rose into the back of his throat as the light of the torch shone on the man's bloodied face. He was unsure of precisely where the blood was coming from as it trickled from beneath the tight sandy curls that covered the man's head. He quickly shone the torch over the man's body, groaning aloud as he saw the obviously broken left arm and the dark bruises that peeked out through the tears of the man's shirt. Lowing the light towards the man's legs he swore as he saw the dash that seemed to crush them. Shining the torch back up onto Danny's face, he whispered, "Can you move your legs?"

"No…no…Can't… can't feel…them…Trapped…radio" Danny panted breathlessly as he clumsily tried to pick up the mic and handed it to his rescuer.

Startled by the mic Danny held in his hand, Kai noticed for the first time since entering the car the radio and the soft police transmission, requesting someone to respond. Taking the mic from Danny's hand, Kai stammered. "You're…you're a cop?"

Danny nodded weakly, "Dan…Danny Williams…Five…Five O… Please…get help."

Staring at the mic he now held in his hand, Kai whispered softly, "I can't. I'm sorry; it's my fault you're here. I can't radio for help."

Danny blinked and slowly looked towards the young man, "Please," he whispered desperately, "I…need…help."

"It's okay, I'm going to get you out!" Kai promised as he placed the mic down on the seat behind him, out of Danny's reach. "I'm going to get you out and take you to someone who will fix you up. I promise!"

Danny nodded and closed his eyes. He knew that nothing else he could say would change the young man's mind.

Trying not to look at Danny, Kai looked down at the dash. He frowned trying to decide how he was going to move it. Finally he reached down and tried to pull it free but was unable to shift it. "I'm going to have to find something I can use to get the dash off you," He told Danny softly as he sat up and backed out of the car.

Shining his torch at the broken branches that littered the ground, Kai quickly searched around for one that looked strong enough to use as a crowbar. Finding on that looked strong enough he quickly returned to the car.

Taking a deep breath, he manoeuvred the branch between the seat and the dash and with all his strength slowly used the branch to force the dash upwards and off of Danny's legs. He cringed as Danny cried out in pain as the dashboard lifted up but did not stop until Danny's legs were free.

Panting from the exertion, Kai grinned and looked up at Danny but the cop was silent, his eyes closed and his head had dropped down onto his chest.

"No!" Kai whispered fearfully as he quickly placed his ear against the officer's chest, breathing a sigh of relief as he heard the slow steady beat of the cop's heart. Straightening back up, he grabbed Danny under his arms and pulled him towards him, adjusting his grip to hold Danny more securely around the chest as he dragged him free from the car.

Placing his burden on the ground, Kai quickly shone the torch over him, grimacing at blood soaked pants. Uncertain of how to treat any of the injuries, Kai turned the light away and shone it back up the steep embankment as he tried to figure out the easiest way to carry the injured man up to his car.

Deciding to follow the damaged pathway the car had created on its uncontrolled journey down the cliff, Kai stood and reached down, grapping Danny under the arms as he awkwardly pulled him to his feet and wrapped a limp arm around his shoulder. Holding the arm around his shoulder tightly, Kai placed his other arm around Danny's waist and began the long trip up the embankment half carrying, half dragging the injured man beside him

The journey back up the hill was slow and exhausting. Kai had slipped several times on the muddy path, causing both of them to fall heavily to the ground but the cop had remained limp and silent, never regaining consciousness at all. Finally reaching the flat ground of the road, Kai carefully placed his burden down, dropping on the ground beside him exhausted.

Kai rested for a few minutes before forcing himself back to his feet. He crossed to the car and opened the back door before returning Dan and awkwardly lifting him up again, carried him to the car and carefully placed him onto the back seat. "See, I promised you that I would get you out." He whispered as he closed the door securely, "And now I'm gunna take you to someone that can help, I hope!" he whispered to himself as he quickly ran around to the driver's side and got into the car.

"Everything's going to be okay now, bruddah!" he breathed as he started the car and drove away.

May looked up as the outer office door opened and McGarrett stormed in, slamming it shut behind him. The furious look on his face warned her that the interview with Suttor had not gone well. He tapped on his two detective cubicle doors as he passed in a silent order for them to follow him into his office, pausing at her desk to ask. "Any luck with the radio?"

"There have been some bursts of static but nothing to really indicate it is Danny. Sorry Boss." She answered quietly.

He squeezed her shoulder and headed into the office, his detectives close on his heels, closing the door behind them as they entered. He walked to his desk and settled into his seat as the two men crossed to the white seats that fronted his desk.

"How did the talk with Suttor go, Boss?" Chin asked, "May told me you were going to speak with him."

"He's cocky but I don't think he has had anything to do with Danno's disappearance." Steve conceded quietly, "He was surprised that Danno was missing. I still want round the clock surveillance kept on him. Any possible suspects in recent cases?"

"We make a lot of enemies in this job, Steve. Checked out anyone who might bear a grudge against Danny but so far they all have airtight alibis. HPD are still checking." Chin informed his boss.

"So far all of Suttor's acquaintances check out Steve. All have alibis. None have had any contact with Suttor in weeks." Kono announced, flicking open his notebook. "Still checking out the leak…"

The ringing of the phone cut Kono off in mid-sentence as his boss picked it up and snapped, "McGarrett." His hand tightened on the receiver as he asked softly, "When? Where? Has anyone gone down to check the car?" He listened to the speaker before he said, "We're on our way. I'll have Bergman meet us at the scene."

Slamming down the phone, he stood and grabbed his coat, announcing, "HPD has just found Danno's car at the bottom of the cliff on old Pali Road."

"And Danno?" Kono asked hesitantly as both Chin and he ran behind their boss out of the office.

"Not sure yet, they haven't reached the car!" Steve answered anxiously

Xxxx

Reaching the shattered remains of the car at the bottom of the muddy embankment, Officer Kimo Tahani swallowed hard and prepared himself to find the body of a good colleague and one of his closest friends. Close friends with Danny for several years, he had often surfed and partied with the younger man. He hesitated a moment before he drew a deep breath and slowly shone the torch inside the car's cabin.

"Kimo?"

Duke's shout startled him from his shock and he turned away from the bloodied interior and looked back up the hill to the anxious men waiting above. "He's …he's not here!" He called back before he turned the torch back towards the car, shining its light over the blood-splattered interior. He frowned at the sight of the branch that was jammed between the seat and the collapsed remnants of the dash before he slowly moved the light across to the open passenger door. "There's blood in the car." He called over his shoulder as he slowly moved around the car in an attempt to confirm his growing suspicions.

"Could he have been thrown out during the crash?" Duke called down as he waved several officers across to where he stood in preparation to organize a search of the undergrowth for the missing detective.

Reaching the other side of the car, Kimo paused as he stared down at a blood stained depression in the mud and several footprints around the door. Kneeling down to the strange depression, he studied it closely with in the torchlight. It had the definite shape of a body. There were more footprints around it that seemed to lead back up the hill. The light of the torch caught the bright shiny splotches of crimson drops in the mud that accompanied the footprints.

Straightening back up, he turned back towards the HPD sergeant. "I don't think so, Duke!" he called, "Looks like someone else has been here and gotten Danny out already. There's footprints here and what looks like a blood trail headed back towards the road, they seem to follow the car's path, Bruddah."

"Okay Kimo, don't touch anything, I'll send the lab boys down." Duke called back.

With a shaka wave, Kimo moved away from the car.

"Do you want us to search the area Duke, just in case Kimo is wrong?"

Turning towards the young HPD patrolman who had discovered the accident site, Duke nodded. "Yeah Bruddah, just in case Danny was thrown from the car during the accident and the prints Kimo found are just from some innocent bystander checking that no one was in the car."

Several officers nodded and slowly began to make their way down the steep hill, carefully avoiding the damaged track made by the car thus not risking disturbing any possible evidence as they began their search.

Duke's attention was diverted from watching the search as a dark mercury car slid to a stop only feet from where he stood and the three Five-O detectives quickly exited the still rocking vehicle, hurrying towards him anxious for his report. He sighed and slowly shook his head, "It's Danny's car, Steve." He began before the men even reached him. "But Danny's not inside."

"So the car may have been dumped here after Danno was snatched?" Steve asked as he glanced down at the dark shape down below.

Duke shook his head. "Kimo reports there is blood inside. He thinks Danny may have been in the car when it went over the edge,"

"Auwe!" Kono muttered as he stared down at the damaged car before returning his attention back to Steve and Duke. "So Danny might have been thrown clear?"

"I don't think so Kono, there is evidence that someone may have gotten Danny out before we arrived." Duke continued pointing down at the track made by the freshly damaged foliage leading down to the car. "There are footprints and a blood trail leading away from the car heading back up towards the road. Just about to send Che and the lab boys down there now. We're checking the area just in case Dan was thrown out as the car went down the cliff."

Steve nodded as he walked to the edge of the road and began to carefully make his way down the slippery hillside until he reached the wreckage below. His chest tightened in fear as the light from his torch lit up the gory interior of the car. The blood splattered seat and dash left no doubt that someone had been seriously injured during the car's wild plunge down the cliff's side.

"The way the dash has crumbled, Danny must have been trapped in the wreckage." Che's quiet voice close behind him caused Steve to jump in surprise as Che softly continued. "Looks like someone used the branch to free him. The passenger's door has been forced opened and there is an impression in the mud on the other side of the car that is consistent with a body being placed on the ground."

"But why take Danny after the accident?" Chin asked softly as he studied the bloody impression that Che had just pointed out.

Kono frowned at the question, before asking one of his own. "Why not just kill him?"

Steve shook his head, unable to come up with any suitable theories, instead deciding to concentrate on the facts. "Any signs that Danno was forced off the road, Che?"

The small oriental forensic specialist slowly walked to the back of the car and played his light at the rear end, carefully studying it before he glanced back at the anxious detective who was waiting for an answer. "I can't see any signs of damage to indicate that another car was involved Steve but in this light it is hard to tell. I'll be able to give you more after we get the car back to the lab. I have the boys taking casts of the footprints. I should be able to give you a report in a couple of hours."

McGarrett slapped Che on the shoulder, "The quicker the better, Che."

Pausing a moment, Steve silently watched the flickering torch lights in the underbrush, searching for the missing detective. "Where are you, Aikane?" he whispered.

"Steve, we may have a break!" Duke's voice broke through Steve's thoughts and Steve quickly turned towards the HPD Sergeant as the older man slipped and slid down the embankment towards him. "Dispatch just radioed. A kid who just walked into HPD with his lawyer and gave himself up. Claims that he was in a car that caused an accident on the old Pali Road this afternoon. "

"He's confessing to this accident! Maybe he can tell us where Danno is!" Steve responded hopefully as he began to follow Duke back up the hill. He paused a moment and turned towards his detectives. "Kono, I want you to take over here. If you find anything at all, radio me! Chin, I want you with me!" He instructed before he began to climb back up the hill, the urgency he felt to speak with the boy evident in his movement.

xxxx

Parking the car in front of an old dilapidated cabin, Kai quickly turned around to look at the man lying on the back seat. "We're here." He whispered to the motionless man, "Everything will be okay now. Palani will help you. He knows about medicine. He was gunna be a doctor. He'll know what to do!"

Climbing out of the car, Kai glanced once more at the unconscious detective before he turned and ran to the house, thumping on the front door with his fists as he shouted. "Palani, please, I need your help. I'm in big pilika!"

He waited a moment before the door opened and the large figure of Palani Kalani seemed to fill the doorway. "What's wrong, bruddah?"

."Please Palani, please help! I'm in big pilika! I didn't know where else to go?" Kai gasped out in desperation. "He's hurt real bad! I didn't know where else to take him!" Kai pleaded, grabbing the older man's arm and pulling him towards the vehicle. "You got to help him! I promised him you would!"

"Who's hurt bad? What happened?" Palani asked as Kai continued to tug at his arm.

"It was an accident!" Kai tried to explain again, his panic rising.

Palani gasped in shock as Kai opened the back passenger door of Kai's mother's car revealing the injured young man lying on the back seat. Climbing into the narrow space between the back and front seats, he quickly felt for a pulse, breathing a silent sigh of relief as he felt the weak drum under his fingertips before he turned back to his friend. "What have you done?"

Xxxx

Sitting up straighter in his chair, Ryan glanced at his lawyer for reassurance as the door of the interrogation room opened and a tall dark headed man walked in carrying a file, followed closely by a smaller Chinese man. His lawyer stood and greeted the pair before he turned and introduced Ryan to both McGarrett and Kelly.

Ryan swallowed nervously as the two detectives settled in seats on the other side of the old wooden table that sat in front of him, shifting uneasily in the chair as they sat silently studying him.

Finally McGarrett spoke, "I understand that you were involved in an accident with a black LTD on the old Pali Road this afternoon."

Blinking in surprise that the detective knew about the other car that was involved, Ryan nodded before he quietly admitted. "We were just having some fun. We were having a couple of drinks and decided to check out Toby's bomb. We wanted to see how well it could handle the corners on the old Pali in the rain. We didn't mean to hurt no one. Honest Mr. McGarrett. We didn't even see the other car till we come around the corner and it swerved to miss us." Ryan stopped and swallowed as he stared at the wall behind the detective remembering the other car as it spun out of control and disappeared over the edge of the cliff.

McGarrett watched the boy intently waiting for him to carry on. His patience was rewarded as Ryan softly cleared his throat and continued. "We…we didn't even see the other car until it swerved to miss us. The driver must have lost control in the mud cause the car…the car began to spin and went over… went over the edge. It...it was an …an accident." He stammered as the tears began to fall.

"What happened then, Son?' Chin prodded gently.

"We…we stopped the car and went to check on the driver of the other car but…but there was nothing we could do." Ryan confessed quietly. "He…he was dead!"

McGarrett tensed at the boy's chilling words, before he whispered, "How do you know he was dead? Did you check him for a pulse?"

Shaking his head, Ryan whispered, "No! We could see him through the window. He was covered in blood and he wasn't moving! He was dead! We didn't know what to do!"

"So just what did you do?" McGarrett snarled, the anger and disgust he was feeling towards this young man rising.

Ryan's voice rose with the hysteria he was beginning to feel as he rushed on. "We were scared. We just killed a guy, Bruddah, we knew that if we got caught we would be in big pilikia. I guess we panicked. We ran back up the hill and tried to cover up any signs of the accident and then we split!"

"You hid any signs of the accident and then you split?" McGarrett's voice dropped dangerously low as he stood and turned away from the youth, "And the other driver was still in the car when you left?"

"He was dead." Ryan stated again, glancing at this lawyer in confusion.

"Steve my client has admitted to being involved with the accident where the other driver was killed and leaving the scene. Why are you asking him about the other driver's body?" His lawyer asked quietly, as he glanced between his client and the two detectives.

McGarrett turned, "We have already found the car Tom. It was Danny William's LTD! There was blood in the car but no body. We believe that Danno may have survived the crash but someone has removed him from the wreckage. Danno is missing."

"Danny?" Tom Ryder stared in disbelief at the Five O lead detective before he turned slowly back towards his young client. "Ryan, the driver of the other car is a police detective. He is now missing! If you know anything else that you are not telling us, I strongly advise you to tell us now!"

"I've told you everything, Mr. Ryder. I swear the other driver was still in the car when we left!"

McGarrett leaned forward with his hands on the table, "I want the names and addresses of the other boys in the car with you and I want you to give Detective Kelly a full statement of what happened!" He said softly.

Ryan nodded before he softly asked, "What's…what's going to happen to me?"

"You will be charged with leaving the scene of an accident and failing to render assistance for starters!" McGarrett growled, "I'm sure that there will be more charges to follow!" He snapped as he turned and walk out of the door, not trusting himself to remain in the room any longer.

Watching McGarrett leave, Tom turned back to Chin. "Chin, can you hold off taking that statement for a minute while I slip out and talk to Steve."

Chin nodded and with a quiet thanks Ryder followed the lead detective from the room.

"Steve, please wait a minute." Tom called as he ran to catch up with McGarrett.

Steve turned and waited before he quietly asked, "What is it Tom?"

"You don't really think that Ryan was involved in Danny's disappearance do you?"

Tom questioned the angry officer.

Steve bristled at the question. "At the moment Tom, he is a definite suspect! He admits to being in the car that caused the accident. He then admits to going down to the wreckage to check if Danno was alive. He claims Danny was dead but they didn't check to make certain and then he ALSO admits to covering up the crime.

What if they realized that Danny was still alive and he was able to identify them? If they were willing to cover up his death to stop from being caught, it is not too hard for me to think that MAYBE they were willing enough to remove him from the car and kill him, hiding his body to cover up the accident!"

"Steve, that's a big jump from covering up an accident that killed someone to murder!" Tom argued softly

"Then help me find out what has happened to Danno, Tom. I want the names and addresses of all the boys that were involved and I want to know every detail of what happened on that road this afternoon!" McGarrett growled as he turned and stormed away.

xxxx

An agonizing pain tore through his left arm and Danny cried out as he tried to free himself from the hands that held him down.

"Easy, easy, Aikane." Palani soothed as he gently placed the arm he had just straightened back onto the bed. "It won't hurt as much soon, I promise!" He whispered as he quickly began to splint the broken arm. Glancing up at Kai, he whispered, "You will need to hold him a little tighter, I have to do his legs next."

"But he said he couldn't feel his legs, Palani!" Kai reminded the older man.

"You said that his legs were trapped by the dash." At Kai's nod, Palani explained, "His legs were probably numb from the pressure of the dash pressing on them, unfortunately the feeling is starting to return and what I have to do is going to cause him a lot of pain. The bones in his legs need to be moved back into place if there is to be any chance of them healing properly. I need to pull the bones back into position. I will need you to hold him down to try and stop him from moving around too much, Kai. Can you do that?"

Swallowing hard, Kai nodded and took a firmer hold of the injured man's shoulders, closing his eyes tightly so he didn't have to watch as Palani moved to the end of the bed and gently grasped Danny's right leg.

"This is going to hurt, my friend, but it must be done. I'm sorry." Palani murmured to the injured man as he began to pull on Danny's leg, ignoring Danny's screams of pain as the bone slowly slid back into place. He quickly lowered the leg back onto the bed before he turned his attention to the left one.

Glancing up at Kai's pale face, he whispered, "Hold him down a just a little longer, I will try and do this quickly."

Pausing only long enough for Kai to nod, Palani grabbed the second leg and manoeuvred the broken bones back into position as Danny's pain filled cries echoed through the small room. Grabbing the splints he had prepared, Palani moved swiftly to splint both legs as he whispered promises that the pain would soon ease to the sobbing man in the bed.

Finishing setting the broken legs, Palani straightened and walked back to the head of the bed. Placing a hand on the injured man's shoulder as he picked up the wet face cloth that he had in the small bowl of water that he had placed next to the bed. Wiping the perspiration and tears from the young man's face, he whispered, "Easy, Aikane, easy. You're safe now. I know it hurts but the pain should ease a little now. I have bandaged your ribs and set your arm and legs. It should help. Try and rest. I will be back in a little while."

"S…Steve? Wh…what?" Danny gasped as he struggled to swallow back an agonized sob, forcing his eyes to focus on the face above. "Wh…where?"

"I'm sorry, Steve's not here." Palani answered softly. "But you are safe with us. You were in an accident. We will take care of you. Rest now!"

"Pl…please…" Danny whispered breathlessly, "Tell…Ste…Steve."

"Rest, Friend, we will talk later." Palani commanded gently as he carefully covered Danny with a light sheet. "Sleep now if you can."

He turned and with a small tip of his head silently ordered Kai from the room before he followed, closing the door the door behind them.

Turning his head towards the door, Danny struggled to fight the darkness that promised to take him away the pain as he whispered weakly, "Steve…Ste…."

Entering the small living room, Palani nodded towards one of the old overstuffed seats, silently instructing Kai to sit as he sat in the other.

"I'm sorry, Palani, I didn't know where else to take him." Kai murmured. "Will he be okay?"

Glancing towards the closed door, Palani shrugged and turned back to look Kai directly in the eye as he answered. "I won't lie to you, Kai, he should be in a hospital and even then…" He shrugged. "He's seriously hurt. I have tried to do what I could for his broken ribs, arm and legs but I can't do anything for any injuries that I can't see inside. As for his legs, I'm not sure if what I have done is enough. There is a good chance that he may lose them even if he does get medical help."

"Auwe!" Kai murmured as he also glanced across at the closed door.

"I am also taking a great risk by helping him. You know that I am no longer allowed to practice medicine and you bring a cop here for me to treat. I want you to tell me everything that happened this afternoon, my friend, and I don't want you to leave anything out. This is more than just covering up an accident. Why couldn't you take him to the hospital? I know that you were drinking but I want to know, were you also driving? Is that the reason why you have brought him here?"

Kai closed his eyes and nodded silently. "They said if I was caught drinking and driving again that they would take me to jail, Palani." He whispered, "I was scared but I couldn't leave him there, Bruddah. Not when I knew he was alive. I just couldn't. I'm sorry that I have got you involved but I didn't know what else to do!"

Leaning across the small gap that separated them, Palani squeezed the younger man's shoulder. "It's okay, my friend, you did the only thing that was possible. I'll take good care of him. I promise. Maybe when he is well enough we can explain things to him."

Taking a quick glance around to ensure that no one was watching, Joey grabbed the old drunk's arm and pushed him into the dark recesses of the small alley. "I heard that you might know something about that missing cop Williams!" He snarled at the frightened man. "Mr. Suttor is very interested in knowing the whereabouts of McGarrett's boy."

The drunk looked up into the killer's eyes, shaking in fear as he stuttered. "I… I was in lock up and I heard da cops talking about Williams. They were saying how Williams was run off da road up on da Pali but when they got there Williams was gone! There's a kid they're questionin' who coughed up to da accident. He was in da car with some other kids when it happin'. The cops think dat the kids could 'ave done somethin' to da missing cop!"

Grabbing the old man by his filthy shirt collar, Joey growled, "Ya better do better than this old man! I want names!"

The old man winced and tried to pull away as he whispered. "Da kid's name was Ryan somethin' …ummm…Ryan Callahan, I think. That's all I know…honest!"

Shoving the drunk back into the wall, Joey pulled a ten-dollar bill from his pocket and pushed it into the other man's hand. "If ya lying old man, Mr. Suttor won't be happy and if he ain't happy than I won't be happy and ya don't want that! Now get out of here!"

"Ye…yes sir!" The old man muttered as he stumbled and almost fell before regaining his balance and staggering as fast as he could away.

Watching his exit, Joey smiled. At least now he had a lead to the missing detective and the lead's name was Ryan.

Xxxx

The sight of the police car parked outside his home unnerved Kai as he cruised slowly past the house in the car. His mother stood on the front lanai speaking with the two police officers. If she had noticed the car, she gave no indication as she turned away and led the men inside.

With his heart beating wildly in his chest, he returned his attention back to the road, driving a little further before he parked in the dark shadows of a tree, the car hidden from the streetlight. Shaking in fear he turned in his seat and watched the front door of his home, waiting for the police to leave so he could safely return.

He swallowed hard, running his hand through his hair as a million questions rushed through his mind. Why were the police at his home? Did they know what he had done? But how? The urge to start the car and drive away was almost overwhelming but the need to know what the police knew kept him from doing so as he silently continued to watch and wait.

His patience was rewarded a few minutes later when the front door to his home opened and an officer stepped out. The officer stopped briefly as he spoke to someone inside the house before he turned and walked to the police car. Kai watched surprised as the officer opened the car door, climbed in and drove away, leaving the second cop behind in the house with his mother.

Biting his bottom lip as he realized the cop at the house was probably waiting for his return, Kai slowly turned back towards the steering wheel and started the engine, driving slowly away. He needed to ring Ryan or Toby to try and discover if they knew why the cops were at his house. He had to find out was happening fast.

xxxxx

"The two kids both confirmed Ryan's story, Steve." Chin stated quietly as he watched his boss pace the room. "They said they were just out having some fun when the accident happened. Both believed that Danny had been killed instantly and insist that his body was still in the wreckage when they covered up all the signs of an accident and left."

"What about the fourth boy? The one that the others claim was driving?" McGarrett questioned, pinning Kono in a stare.

"Kai Malahini, Boss." Kono answered looking down at the small notebook he held in his hand as McGarrett began to pace. "Aged eighteen, several previous convictions for drink driving and speeding, currently on probation. Lives at home with his mother. Father died about six months ago in a car accident.

HPD went to pick him up but he ain't home. The mother said he was upset after he got home this afternoon. He claimed he wasn't feelin' well and went to bed. Then he got back up and announced he was going for a drive."

"Probably feelin' guilty about the accident Bruddah," Chin commented.

McGarrett stopped pacing and swung around, his finger stabbing the air as he theorized, "Maybe he was feeling guilty enough to return to the scene and check if Danno was really dead. Maybe he found Danno alive and injured and decided to try and help."

"If he's scared of being caught he might not have taken Danny to a hospital." Chin interrupted.

"Maybe he has taken Danno somewhere else, hoping that he can treat Danno's injuries himself!" McGarrett finished as he turned back to Kono. "I want an APB placed on the boy."

"On it Boss." Kono answered as he stood to leave. He paused and turned back. "One of the HPD guys is at the mother's house. She was expecting Kai back soon so Duke told the officer to wait." He informed his boss before he left the room.

"What about the other three kids, Boss? We have booked them with leaving the scene of an accident and failing to render assistance. Want me to run them over to Juvie Hall?" Chin asked.

McGarrett ran his hand over his face as he considered their next step before he answered. "No Chin, let them go but I want them tailed. Maybe Kai will try and make contact with one of them and they will lead us to him and Danno."

Chin nodded and turned to look behind him as Duke hurried into the office. The HPD Sergeant looked agitated as he approached McGarrett's desk. "We have big Pilikia, Steve. Word on the coconut vine is Joey Hanson is out on the street looking for Danny. The talk is he has a contract to fulfill."

" Isn't Joey one of Suttor's boys?" Chin asked, frowning.

Duke nodded. "Suspected in several hits but he's like Teflon, Bruddah, nuthin' sticks!"

"I want an APB out on Hanson, Duke; class him as potentially armed and dangerous! We can't let him find Danno before we do! If Danno is as seriously injured as we think he is, he won't have a chance against Hanson!' Steve turned to Chin. "Keep an extra close eye on the kids, if Hanson finds out that they may know something about Danno's whereabouts, than he might decide to try and pay one of them a visit to see precisely what they know!"

"Will do, Boss!" "Done, Steve." Both men responded as they hurried from the office to carry out their orders.

McGarrett silently watched them go before he turned and sat down at his desk and pulled the report Che had sent on the results of his examination of Danno's car. It confirmed that Danno had not been struck by another vehicle and hypothesized that Danny had lost control in the wet conditions trying to avoid an accident. Blood found in the car was Danno's blood type and Che noted that a significant of blood had been found.

The passenger door had been forced open and the branch found within the car had marks consistent with it having been used as a crowbar to lever the dash up, confirming the assumption that Danny had be trapped.

Steve smiled grimly as he read that Che had managed to lift several latent fingerprints from both the driver's and passenger door as well as from the mic within the car that did not match with any of the Five O detectives and that he had sent them across to HPD to be checked through the data base. The shoeprints found at the scene were distinctive with a strange wear patch in the middle of the sole and would be easy to match with the suspect's shoes.

Pushing the report aside, Steve sighed and rubbed his eyes. The soft click of the electric clock on his desk reminded him of the race against time to find his closest friend.

Ryan could not quite believe that the cops had decided to charge and then release him on bail. He had expected to be thrown in jail, with no hope of being set free. He glanced nervously at his father as they climbed out of the car and silently walked into the house. He knew that his parents were deeply upset at what he had done but his father had remained silent during the trip home.

He sighed and bit his lip as he stepped inside, staring at the floor as he walked, not yet ready to face the fear and disappointment in his mother's face.

"What the…? Who are you?" His father's startled words caught Ryan's attention and he looked up into the barrel of the gun that was pointed at his father and himself, his mother was gagged and tied to a chair, watching them with frightened eyes.

"Just shut up and sit down, old man. Ya do what I say and no one gets hurt!" The gunman snarled as he nodded towards another chair, his gun never wavering from his father's chest. "And you kid, use that rope on the table to tie him up. Any tricks and I swear I will drill them both!" He threatened as he grabbed Ryan's arm and pushed him towards his father.

Complying with the gunman's demands, Ryan tied his father securely to the chair before straightening up and stammering." Wh…what do you want?"

"I want us to have a little talk about that cop you ran off the road today." Joey answered calmly as he grabbed Ryan and pushed him down onto a chair. "I wanna know where the cop is? And I wanna know now!" he growled.

"I don't….don't know where he is, Mister." Ryan whimpered fearfully. "He was in the car when we left I swear."

With a hard backhand, Joey struck the boy across the mouth. "But you might have an idea what could have happened to him, don't cha, kid?"

Ryan swallowed back a frightened sob and nodded. "Kai…Kai wanted to go back. He…he was worried that …that the driver was…wasn't dead. Maybe…maybe." His words were cut off as the phone began to ring and he stared wide eyed at his captor.

"You expecting a call?" Joey asked, eyeing the ringing instrument.

"Could…could be Toby or…or Kai." Ryan stuttered.

"Answer it!' Joey demanded. "But try anything…" he pointed the gun at Ryan's mother silently warning Ryan of the consequences.

Ryan nodded and he picked up the phone, nervously answering, "Callahan's residence, this is Ryan, can I help you?"

"Ryan," Kai's panicked voice echoed in his ear, "It's Kai!"

Xxxx

They had overlooked something! The thought replayed itself over and over in McGarrett's mind. Grabbing for the thin folder that held the life story of Kai Malahini, the lead detective opened it back to the first page and began to re read it.

The youngest of three children, Kai had been born and raised in Honolulu, a model son and student, well liked by all until the death of his father in a car accident six months ago. McGarrett shook his head and quietly growled in anger beneath his breath as he read HPD accident report.

Kai's father had been driving home when he had swerved in an attempt to miss a car full of drunken youths. His car had gone over an embankment and he had been trapped inside. The youths fled the scene and never reported the accident, Kai's father was found deceased in the wreckage six hours later. The coroner's report placed the time of death from blood loss approximately three hours after the crash. The youths had been located and charged after one boosted about the accident to several other people.

Since the accident, the young man had become angry and bitter, he no longer attended school and had began to associate with several boys who were well known to the police. Kai had also begun to be notice by the law with several arrests for drink driving. He was currently on probation.

McGarrett sighed and rubbed his hand tiredly across his face; so far he had found nothing that he had not already been made aware of about the missing youth from the reports of his detectives. Picking up the mug of coffee, he took a large sip as he turned the page to Kai's known associates, his eyes scanning the list as he swallowed several mouthfuls of the lukewarm beverage.

PALANI KALANI. Placing the mug back down onto the desk McGarrett stared at the name. PALANI KALANI. Frowning at the familiarity of the name, he searched his memory as his fingers drummed on the polished desktop. His unconscious drumming stopped in mid beat and he quickly reached for the intercom. "Kono, grab the file on Palani Kalani and anything HPD might have on his present whereabouts!" He ordered tersely, "As soon as you have it, bring it in!"

"Palani Kalani?" Kono repeated, frowning at the familiar name, "Wasn't he the doctor…" Memories of the case spurred the Hawaiian detective into action as he tried to ignore the shiver that ran down his spine as he quickly answered, "On it, Boss!"

McGarrett quickly pressed a second button on the intercom, not even waiting for May to respond as he snapped out, "May, contact Chin and Duke. Tell them I want them back at the palace immediately!"

"Will do Boss!" May responded as she watched Kono hurry from the office. Reaching for the phone, she felt her hopes rise a little. Steve was onto something; maybe he had a lead to where their missing detective was. She silently prayed that her assumption was correct as she requested a patch through to Chin's and Duke's cars. Unable to prevent herself from glancing towards the darkened cubicle that belonged to the youngest member of the team, May prayed a little harder as she waited for the two officers to respond.

Xxxx

It was something about the man who lingered near the gateway to the markets that made Kai feel uneasy as he stepped back further into the cover of the darkness of the shadows of the trees. Ryan had definitely told him that Ryan's father would be with the lawyer but this man was alone. A cop - maybe? Whoever he was, Kai decided not to trust him.

He stood silently for several more minutes; glad that he had decided to wait across the road and not where he had told Ryan he would be as he continued to watch the man's agitated pacing. Silently and carefully he backed several more feet into the darkness before he turned and hurried away, continually glancing back to ensure the stranger had not seen him.

He swore quietly under his breath, unable to believe that Ryan would betray his trust. Kicking his shoe against the ground in frustration as he walked, he tried to stop the hot tears that blurred his vision from falling. He had just wanted someone to advice him what to do. He felt so confused and scared.

The sudden honk of a horn and the deafening squeal of brakes to the left of him jarred him from his thoughts, He jumped and started to turn towards the noise but had not time no time to react before he was hit by the vehicle, his body hit the bonnet before it struck the windscreen and bounced of the moving vehicle and rolled several times on the hard bitumen, finally coming to a stop in the gutter. Kai never heard the car stop or the driver's door open nor did he hear the woman driver's hysterical screams as she stared at his broken and bleeding body.

Joey cursed as he stood several yards back and watched as a small crowd gathered around the boy's body. He had spotted the boy at the International Markets as the boy walked away and had followed him several blocks waiting for an opportunity to grab him. The kid had seemed preoccupied and oblivious to his presence and Joey doubted the kid had even noticed the car when he had stepped out onto the road.

The sounds of approaching sirens filled the air and Joey stepped even further away from the scene, lingering in the darkness of the shadows as he watched the arrival of the police car and the ambulance. It only took a minute before he heard the doctor announce. "He's pau. Probably died instantly!"

With a growled curse, Joey turned and walked away ignoring the sobs of the weeping driver. The accident held no interest for the killer now; his thoughts had already turned to the other boys and what they might know about Williams.

Xxxx

McGarrett looked up from the file he was re reading as he heard the customary knock on his office door a moment before it opened and Chin, Duke and Kono entered. Kono held a thick file in his hand, his eyes wide in undisguised fear as he passed the file to his boss. "You don't think the kid took Danno to Kalani for help, do you Boss?" he asked quietly, almost hesitantly, "He's lulu!"

Chin glanced at Duke before he asked, "Wasn't Kalani the doctor convicted a few years ago for killing patients that he believed were dying?"

Duke nodded. "He was found guilty but was sentenced to a mental hospital. It was an insanity plea. Heard on the coconut vine he was released a few months ago!"

Kono nodded, "He was more than insane, Bruddah. Dat doctor was fruiter than a fruitcake. Claimed he was doing the only thing humane and putting his patients out of their misery- giving them peace from their suffering. That was one of da first cases I worked on in HPD, Bruddahs!" Kono shivered as he remembered the Hawaiian doctor testifying in court. The man had been frightening in his beliefs.

McGarrett nodded his agreement. "Okay Gentleman. I think we need to work on the assumption the Kai might not be aware of the doctor's past. It happened ten years ago, so the boy might not even know. If our theory is correct and he has taken Danno to Kalani for help than he has placed Danno in grave danger. We need to find out if Danno is with Kai and Kalani and find out fast. Have we got an address?"

"Kalani was released into his mother's care, Steve. Have one of the boys at HPD checking now whether he is still there." Kono informed his Boss. "Also got the last photos taken of him at the mental hospital being sent over."

Steve nodded his approval before he ordered, "Get onto the doctor who was in charge of his treatment and ask for his records, explain what we think has happened, if the doc refuses to co operate get a court order from Stewart!"

Kono nodded as he jumped from his seat and rushed from the office.

Xxxx

Each small inch she managed to crawl caused Maggie Callahan pain but the critically injured woman was determined to summons help for her family and herself.

She had regained consciousness only a short time before and found herself staring at the motionless bodies of her husband and Ryan. It had taken her several more minutes to remember the terrifying ordeal of the strange man who had forced his way into her home, tied her up and then waited for the arrival of Paul and Ryan from the police station. Swallowing a sob, she recalled the gunman next actions of forcing her son to tie his father up and the phone call from Kai.

She had listened with terror as their captor had forced Ryan to set his best friend up to be murdered by the stranger and then watched in horror after the deed was done as the gunman turn the gun on her son, shooting him in the chest. The next few moments turned into a terrifying blur as she remembered the gun turn towards herself and the blinding flash and the pain in her head before the world had turned into darkness.

When she had awoken, the gunman had fled and she found herself on the floor, the rope that had bound her to the chair had loosened, and she was able to shake her arms free. Ignoring the pain and the dizziness, she crawled inch by painful inch towards where the phone cord dangled.

It seemed to take an eternity but she finally reached her destination. She bit her bottom lip as she forced unco-operative fingers to slowly pull the cord, tugging relentlessly until the phone toppled from the table and fell just inches from where she lie. Her eyes closed in exhaustion but she forced them back open as she placed a finger in the dial and shakily dialed for the operator. The operator's voice sounded like an angel to the injured woman as Maggie struggled to speak, opening and closing her mouth several times before she managed to whisper, "Help us!"

Kalani silently moved back into the bedroom and being extremely careful not to disturbed the sleeping young man carefully slipped a thermometer into Dan's mouth before placing his fingers on his wrists to take a pulse. He sighed as he released Danny's arm and reached for the thermometer and held it up to the light to read the temperature.

"You're getting worse!" He murmured as he placed the thermometer on the table and turned back to the man in the bed. "An infection is starting to set in, without antibiotics there is not much I can do. Hopefully Kai will return soon. I'll have to send him out again to see if he can obtain some. I still have a couple of contacts on the black market that will sell any drugs for a high enough price; I might have to get him to get some more morphine as well. I'm afraid I have only a couple of doses left and I like to leave enough in case we need it…" His words trailed off as he stared unseeingly at the injured man before he suddenly shook his head and smiled gently, "I will promise you that no matter what happens my Aikane, I will not let you suffer at all." He whispered as his hand lightly touched the side of Danny's face before he straightened back up. "I have never let my patients suffer!"

Not many people in this world frightened Joey Hanson but his mafia boss was the one person who terrified the usually iced veined killer. Joey swallowed hard as he told the smaller man that so far all leads to the missing cop had drawn a blank and the only person who seemed to know of Williams' whereabouts now was probably cooling off on a slab in the morgue.

"I tried to grab the kid, Col, but he stepped out in front of a car- nothin' I could do so I got out of there as soon as I heard he was dead! It weren't my fault!" He stammered as he watched his boss warily.

Col Suttor stared at the lean blond headed assassin that stood in front of his desk, his eyes flashing in undisguised anger as he slowly leaned forward and growled, "So you are telling me that you can't find one lousy cop on this island! That the only lead you had to him is dead! I don't want to hear no excuses, Joey, you find Williams! You find him before Supercop McGarrett does and you shut him up good! If you can't do it, I'll find someone else that can and we both know that I only need the services of one enforcer." Suttor warned.

Joey stiffened at the unspoken threat of what it would mean to his own life if another hitman was brought in to do his job and he quickly rushed to reassure his boss. "I can find Williams, Boss, I just need a little more time to find where the kid stashed him. Word on the street is the cops think Williams was seriously hurt in the accident, so the kid couldn't have taken him far. Give me a couple more hours, Boss, I promise that you will never have to worry about that cop again!"

Col's eyes narrowed as he glared at the hitman, "And with no leads to the pig, just how are you going to do it?"

"There are still two other kids who might know where the dead kid might have taken Williams. I know that I can make them talk. " Joey grinned, his eyes shining brightly in anticipation to the chats.

"Did your Momma drop you or somethin' when you were a baby!" Suttor roared, surprising the excited hitman, "Them cops are gunna be guarding them kids like them are Fort Knox, ya Idiot! Ya killed one of them and his damn family. McGarrett might watch too much television but he ain't no dumb cop. He knows someone is lookin' for his boy!"

Joey blinked in surprised as his face reddened at the harsh chastisement, "Don't…don't worry Boss. I'll find Williams for ya, if it's the last thing I do!" He promised solemnly.

"You bettah!" Suttor acknowledged, a dangerous tone colored his voice, "Cause if McGarrett gets to his boy before you do, that kid's body won't be the only one in that morgue! Now git outta here!"

Joey nodded silently as he stumbled backwards towards the door, his eyes never leaving his boss' until he reached the open doorway and he turned and fled.

Xxxx

McGarrett watched the door close behind Kono before he turned his attention back to the two other men in the room. "Is there any word on the APB's on either Kai or Hanson?"

Both men shook their heads before Chin spoke. "It's like the island swallowed them up, Steve. No sightings of either. I checked with the surveillance team on Suttor and he hasn't left his office all evening."

"Kai hasn't returned home to his mother's home either, Steve and there has been no sightings of Kai at any of the boy's homes." Duke added.

"Keep on it!" McGarrett ordered, "I want all of the boys re questioned. Find out how close Kai was to Kalani. Check if he would turn to Kalani if he needed help with Danno."

"On it Boss!" Chin answered as he rose from his chair but was waved back to remain seated as McGarrett turned to Duke.

"Duke, I want to search for anywhere that Kalani might be holding Danno. Check if he has any…" Before McGarrett could continue, his phone rang and he snatched it up answering, "McGarrett."

He listened to the caller for several minutes before he hung up the phone. "HPD has just located Kai Malahini. He is a guest of Doc's down in the morgue. Killed about an hour ago after being hit by a car near the International Markets." Steve informed them as he stood, grabbed his coat and headed towards the door, the two officers close on his heels.

The pain that had greeted his previous returns to consciousness, although still present, was more manageable if he remained still. The drugs that he vaguely remembered being injected with the last time he was awake now left him feeling slightly detached and light headed. He felt hot and feverish, his lips cracked and dry and each small breath he inhaled felt like knives tearing into his lungs. It was more than just the broken ribs, he decided, as he tasted the blood in the back of his throat

A noise close to the bed alerted him that he was not alone and he slowly forced his heavy eyelids opened and blinked several times as he tried to focus on the figure that stood only feet away. "Steve?" He whispered as the figure turned towards him and came closer.

Hearing the soft whisper from the man in the bed, Palani turned and hurried to the side of the bed. "It's okay, Aikane, I'm Palani, Doctor Palani Kalani not Steve. I'm taking care of you, you're safe."

Danny frowned as the man's face finally came into focus. The man's name was disturbingly familiar and even in his drugged state it only took Danny a few moments before he remembered why. "Doctor Kalani?" He whispered.

Palani smiled as he softly placed his hand against Danny's forehead and grimaced at the heat he felt. He forced a small reassuring smile on his face as he turned his attention back to the question. "I see you are familiar with my name. Yes I am who you think I am. I was wrongly convicted for murder several years ago because the establishment did not like me from preventing my patients from suffering." He said softly as he reached for the small bottle of aspirin and shook two into his hand before he poured a small glass of water. "Aspirin for your fever." He told Danny softly as he lifted Danny's head up and placed the tablets in his mouth.

He lowered Danny back onto the pillows as he continued to talk. "You were involved in an accident and my young friend Kai brought you here. He was frightened of taking you to the hospital and news of your disappearance on the radio has frightened him further. He left a couple of hours ago to see if he could get some type of legal advice on what he should do. I promised him that I would take care of you."

Danny nodded silently at the man's words as he recalled the man's sudden volatile mood swings he had shown in court, placid and friendly on moment, the doctor had erupted into several times into an explosive tantrum when he disagreed with whatever was being presented. He was acutely aware that any little mistake on his part could set the man's paranoia off.

Straightening abruptly, Palani turned and walked back to the window, pulling back the curtain as he stared out at the darkness of the night. Danny watched warily as Palani suddenly turned and began to pace around the room muttering, "Kai should have been back hours ago! Something must of happen!" Palani snapped as he abruptly stopped his agitated pacing and turned to study the injured man in the bed. "You need antibiotics and painkillers. Without Kai, I can't get either but I promise you no matter what happens, I won't let you suffer. You have my word on that, my Aikane."

The doctor's words sent icy shivers through Danny's soul as he remembered just how Kalani had stopped his other patients from suffering. It was hard to think through the fuzzy effects of the drugs that Kalani had given him for the pain but Danny knew if he had any chance of surviving he needed to contact Steve. He shifted nervously on the bed, stifling a moan as the movement caused pain to tear through his body. He knew he had one chance as he watched as the disturbed man start to pace again.

"I have a…friend that …will…will help!" Danny whispered breathlessly. "He…he's the …coroner. He'll… he'll get us…what…what we…need."

Palani turned and stared at the injured man for several minutes, considering the option before he responded quietly, "He won't be able to prescribe the medication through the regular channels. Can't have it traced back to me."

Danny nodded, "He'll …he'll…do a…deal…for it." Danny reassured the agitated man, closing his eyes tightly for a moment as he tried to silently ride out the wave of agony that rippled through his body before he opened them and spoke again. "He…he owes…me...Got...him out of…a… scrape…a couple of…months…ago."

"How do we contact him?" Palani asked eagerly, liking the idea.

"Need to …ring him…at…the morgue." Danny whispered, "I'll…I'll have to…talk to…him…He would…be wary…of any…anyone else!"

Danny released a small painful sigh of relief as Palani nodded his agreement and reached for the phone on the bedside table but the sense of relief was short-lived as Palani suddenly turned. "How will we know that he won't go straight to your boss and tell him that you rang? The whole damn police department is tearing this island apart looking for you at the moment." Palani demanded, his nervous agitation at the situation rising.

Biting his lip, Danny tried to think fast for an answer that would lull Kalani back into a false sense of security. "I'll…I'll make sure…he knows…not…not to…tell McGarrett." Danny answered haltingly, "He…he owes me…He'll…keep his…mouth shut!"

Placated with Danny's answer, Palani asked for the number of the morgue and asked to speak with Doctor Bergman when the call was answered before he handed the phone to the injured man and listened closely to Danny's side of the conversation.

Xxxx

Looking up from the body he was examining, Doc nodded at the three men who entered the autopsy room and walked over to the table. "Just finishing up." He announced quietly, "Our young boy here died instantly from head and internal injuries after being struck by a car. HPD said you had an APB out on him for being involved in Danny's accident and possible abduction?"

"What's right, Doc." Steve confirmed as he stared at the body of Kai Malahini. "We know that he was the driver of the car that ran Danno off the road and we believe that he may have returned to the scene later and removed Danno from the car, possibly wanting to help."

Doc nodded as he glanced across to his assistant, "Nick, close up for me." He ordered softly as he stepped away from the table and removed his mask and gloves before returning his attention back to the Five O detective. "Any idea of where he might have taken Danny?"

"We discovered one of the boy's associates was Dr. Palani Kalani."

"Kalani!" Bergman's eyes grew wide in response to the name, "I thought he was still being treated at the asylum! Steve, if the boy took Danny to him for help than …"

"I know Doc. I was hoping that you might have found something on the boy that could give us some clue to where Kai might have taken Danno."

"Other than some coins, his library card and car keys, the boy's pockets were empty, Steve. His clothes were covered in blood, some recent from the accident, some dried. More blood than I expected from his injuries so I sent his clothing and shoes across to Che."

"If we are correct and he was the one who pulled Danno from the car than some of the blood on his clothes could be Danno's!" Chin interrupted.

"By the amount of blood I saw in the car, there was no way anyone removing Danny from the car would not have been able to avoid Danny's blood…" The shrill ring of the phone interrupted Doc's observation and he excused himself as he reached over and answered the call. "Bergman."

"Doc… I… need… your help."

Doc's posture stiffened and his hand tightened on the receiver as his eyebrows lifted and he urgently signaled to McGarrett as he heard the missing detective's weak whisper in his ear. "Danny? Where are you? Are you hurt?"

"Are you…alone?"

The three officers' attention turned to the coroner's phone call and McGarrett quickly tilted his head in a silent order to Chin to trace the call.

Frowning at the question, Doc sensed that somebody was with Danny and listening in, he placed up a hand in warning as McGarrett reached for the phone and turned on the speaker as he answered cautiously. "Yes, I'm alone."

"Doc…I need…to call in …that favor. The…one McGarrett …doesn't…know about!"

Bergman's frown deepened at the question and he glanced at McGarrett who nodded with him to play along with Danny's request. "Okay Danny."

"There…was…an acc…accident. No…no one's fault." Danny breathed as he closed his eyes and tried to swallow back a groan as Palani accidentally jostled his body, attempting to get closer to the phone to hear both sides of the conversation.

McGarrett's hands curled up into tight fists as he heard Danny moan but he forced himself to remain silent as Danny's pain filled voice again echoed in the room. "I have…a … friend…a doc…doctor who is…treating…my injuries." Danny panted breathlessly, "But…he doesn't…have…some of …the drugs…I need. He…he isn't able…to…get them. That's…that's why… I …need the… favor!"

Glancing across at McGarrett for advice, Bergman saw the detective nod before he responded to Danny, "I gather that your friend wants to make sure the drugs can't be traced to him. I can manage that, Danny!" Doc's voice dropped with concern as he asked quietly, "How badly are you hurt?"

Steve and Duke leaned closer as they heard someone speak to Danny in the background before Danny's voice cracked a little as he answered. "Doc…Doctor Kal…Kalani will…tell you…what …I…need."

Danny fell back against the pillow and closed his eyes in anguish as Kalani took the phone from his hand. He felt alone and isolated from his friends and colleagues as the doctor took control of the call. He had not been able to even give Doc a hint as to where he was being held. He sighed tiredly as he allowed himself to drift back to the pain free darkness; his last thought was that he did not even know where he was!

"Doctor Bergman?" Palani snapped into the phone, "We have a mutual friend that we both want to help, so I am hoping that he is correct about you being willing to co operate!"

He heard the doctor on the other end of the phone agree and reassure him that nobody would ever know of the phone call or of their transactions. Palani glanced down at Danny before he returned his attention to the Doctor on the other end of the phone. "Dan was involved in a car accident this afternoon. Unfortunately due to certain circumstances he could not be taken to a hospital for medical help but instead was brought to me."

"Just how seriously was Danny hurt?" Doc questioned anxiously.

"Quite severely, I'm afraid," Palani answered softly as he walked away from the edge of the bed and turned his back to Danny, trying to minimize what Danny might overhear if he regained consciousness. "He was trapped in the car for several hours before he was freed and has lost a substantial amount of blood. He also has suffered a concussion, chest and arm injuries and unfortunately quite severe leg injuries, as for internal injuries I have no way of knowing what damage has been done.

I have set several broken bones and splinted them and have managed to close his lacerations but he is showing symptoms of infection and is in a large amount of pain." Palani explained quickly, "I have no antibiotics to treat him with and only a limited supply of morphine."

"So you need antibiotics and pain killers." Doc interrupted. "And you want me to supply what you need to treat Danny?"

Kalani laughed at how perceptive the doctor was and answered eagerly, "Yes!"

"Would you like me to assist you with treating him?" Doc offered as McGarrett angrily shook his head against the impromptu offer from the coroner. McGarrett grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled on it – _Don't antagonize him, just arrange a time and place to meet!_

Palani fell silent for a moment as he turned and stared at the motionless figure on the bed. "Look Doctor. Dan told me that you owed him for that little mistake he got you out of!" He growled angrily, "So all he wants you to do is get the drugs I need and meet me somewhere nice and quiet and then be on your way!"

"Okay, okay!" Doc replied calmly, "I was just offering to assist you if you wanted the help. Remember I'm Danny's friend as well. I can have the drugs within the hour, where would you like to meet?"

Glancing down at his watch, Kalani answered, "Meet me in two hours in the parking lot of Tanni's Bar on Hotel Street."

"Two hours!"

"Don't be late and be alone!" Kalani growled before he hung up the phone.

McGarrett turned to where Chin spoke softly into the second phone. He watched as the Chinese detective thanked the operator and hung up the phone. "Got it, Boss. Call came from a house on Nuuanu Drive!"

"Good work, Chin!' McGarrett smiled for the first time since Danny's disappearance.

McGarrett's smile faded as he turned towards Doc. "From what Kalani told you of Danno's injuries, how seriously injured is he?"

Doc frowned, "I can only harbor a guess, Steve, but by what the madman has told us, Danny is in desperate need of medical attention. I would say his condition is probably critical."

Steve nodded as he began to pace the small office. "We know that Kalani has managed to give Danno some medical care."

Doc nodded, "My biggest concern Steve is the amount of blood Danny has lost and if he is bleeding internally. We might not have much time before Dan bleeds to death. "

"Kalani wants to meet you in the parking lot in just over an hour and a half to collect the drugs." Steve continued. "Have you ever met Kalani?"

Bergman frowned and shook his head, "No, I know about his deeds but I have never met the man."

"Good, good!" Steve mumbled as the other three men exchanged confused glances as McGarrett stopped pacing and turned to Doc. "What are Danno's chances if we wait till Kalani is at the meet before we move in?"

"Steve, I honestly am unable to tell you!" Doc protested.

McGarrett sighed. "If we try and make a move on Danno and Kalani now, there is the great chance that Kalani will panic. Danno wouldn't have a chance! What I'm suggesting, Gentlemen, is we divide into two teams. One team goes to the house and moves in to rescue Danno after Kalani leaves. Doc, I want you with that team." At Doc's nod of agreement, McGarrett turned to the other two men. "Duke and Chin, I want you to meet with Kalani. He doesn't know what Doc looks like so that should make it much easier for you, Duke, to approach him without rousing his suspicions. Chin, I want the area surrounded by HPD, I don't want Kalani to slip away! "

Duke and Chin nodded as McGarrett continued. "Kono was getting Kalani's hospital psych reports, hopefully that will clue us in to how we can expect him to react." McGarrett glanced at his watch as he started to walk to the door. "Okay Gentleman, We have just over an hour to get our plans set up!' He announced as the four men left the coroner's office and headed back to the palace.

Xxxx

Kono lightly squeezed the hand of the critically ill woman promising solemnly that Five O would catch the man who had just murder her family. He straightened up from leaning over the edge of the gurney and nodded his head at the attendants, indicating that the woman had finished talking and was now ready to be transported to the ER.

He stepped back and watched as the gurney was placed into the back of the ambulance and the HPD officer he had ordered to guard the patient stepped in after her before the doors closed and the ambulance sped away. He sighed and glanced towards the house that was now a beehive of activity with HPD and forensic officers entering and leaving.

He slowly walked over to his car and reached through the window and grabbed the radio mic requesting a patch to Five 0 and McGarrett. He only had to wait a few moments before his boss' voice responded.

"Kono, where are you?"

With another sigh, Kono depressed the mic button and began. "Steve, HPD received a phone call for help from Ryan Callahan's home. The HPD officer watching the house responded and found Mr. Callahan and Ryan dead on the kitchen floor, Mrs. Callahan has been shot in the head. The ambulance attendants say she is critical. She's on her way to Queens Hospital; I have a HPD officer guarding her."

"What happen to the officer watching the house?" McGarrett demanded.

"The shooter arrived just after Ryan and his dad left to go to HPD. He was already in the house when HPD arrived for the surveillance. I have spoken to Charley Horosho, Steve, he was on duty. He saw and heard nothing at the time of the shooting. The shooter musta used a silencer!"

"Has Mrs. Callahan been able to tell you anything?"

"She was conscious when I arrived and was able to give me a description of the shooter. Sounds like Joey Hanson, Boss! And what she was able to tell me, it sounds like he is looking for Danny!"

"Kono, get HPD to take over the crime scene. I need you back at the palace! We have an address where Kalani is holding Danno. If Hanson is closing in, we better move fast." McGarrett ordered.

"On my way Steve." Kono responded as he turned and waved the HPD sergeant across before he returned his attention back to the mic. "I left Kalani's psych file on your desk. Managed to talk to the doc in charge of his case. He warned if Kalani is placed under stress he is not sure how he would react!"

"Wonderful!" McGarrett muttered before he replied. "Okay Kono. I want you back here fast. Time is running out!"

"Leaving now, Boss!" Kono responded before he replaced the mic. He turned quickly, leaving instructions with the sergeant before he slipped into the car and drove away.

Joey smiled as he turned up the police scanner in his car that was monitoring the police radio calls. So McGarrett had found the address where the kid had taken his missing golden-headed boy! 'This was going to be easier than taking candy from a baby, McGarrett had done the hard work finding the cop." he laughed. 'All he had to do was follow the great supercop to get to Williams and then…' Joey chuckled as he gently caressed his gun – 'Job done!' He thought delightedly, already imagining the thrill of killing the cop!

Xxxx

McGarrett's office was crowded with HPD officers and the Five O detectives but the silence was complete as they listened to the detailed plan of the rescue of one of their own. The group had been divided into two.

The first group led by Chin would be responsible for the capture of Palani Kalani. Plain clothed officers would be located around the area, either in the bar itself or in surveillance cars parked out on the street or in darkened areas of the parking lot. No one was to move from their assigned position until either Duke or Chin ordered it, McGarrett emphasized. Doctor Palani Kalani was dangerous and unpredictable and if he managed to escape than Danny Williams' life would most certainly be forfeited if Williams were not at the location that they believed he would be. Duke would approach the suspect and make the arrest.

Rolling out a map on the side table, McGarrett detailed the plan for Williams' actual rescue. He would lead the team, accompanied by Kono and Doctor Bergman and several HPD officers who would be located in positions around the small cabin where the phone call had been traced to, an ambulance would be standing by at a safe location. Pointing out the location of the secluded cabin and the road access, McGarrett than pointed out to the remaining HPD officers the strategic positions where they would be discreetly parked along the route that Kalani would need to take to drive to Honolulu.

The plan, McGarrett explained, was to wait until Kalani had left the cabin before moving in to recover the injured detective. Kalani's moves would be monitored and reported back to the rest of the teams as Kalani passed each of the surveillance points thus ensuring no surprise return of the madman during the rescue. A description of Kalani's car and license tags were quickly distributed amongst the officers as well as a photo of the suspect.

A quiet murmur of approval rippled through the room as McGarrett rolled back up the map and glanced at his watch. "Okay gentlemen, we have three quarters of an hour to get into position." McGarrett informed them. "We want to move fast and quietly. We don't want to spook this man away, so please be extra careful. Danno's life depends on this!" He reminded them. "Also we are aware that Joey Hanson is out there searching for Danny. If he is spotted I want him arrested immediately or followed discreetly if Kalani is around. Remember we do not want to tip Kanai off that this is a trap!"

The officers nodded and at McGarrett's soft order of "Let's go!" turned and hurried from the Five O offices to the unmarked police cars that surrounded the palace in the parking lot below.

Sliding lower in his car seat, Joey watched the cops run down the front stairs of the Palace and climb into unmarked police cars before driving away. He waited until he spotted the man whom he had decided to follow, smiling as he saw McGarrett finally exit, an older man and the Hawaiian detective both accompanying him as the crossed to McGarrett's Mercury.

Aware of the close friendship between McGarrett and his missing golden boy, Joey had no doubts that McGarrett would lead him right to his target. He grinned at the thought of killing Williams right under the supercops' nose- _Man what a way to get the reputation of a lifetime- his services would always be in high demand. He could name his own price for his talent!_

He watched as McGarrett started his car and drove away before he eased his own car out behind the small entourage of cars that followed McGarrett's, certain that no one would notice an extra-unmarked car to the motorcade.

Glancing anxiously at his watch, Palani sighed, Kai should have returned by now. He had promised to return and help care for the young detective and Kai had never backed out of a promise before. A cry of pain from the bedroom caught the agitated doctor's attention and he turned from the window and hurried to the dimly lit bedroom, turning on the overhead light as he entered.

Williams tossed restlessly on the bed, his face flushed with fever and his body drenched in sweat. The young detective was in obvious pain from his injuries and Palani knew that the last dose of morphine was wearing off.

He stood a moment staring at the injured young man silently debating what he should do. Finally he moved to the edge of the bed and reached for the vial of morphine on the table beside it. Grabbing the used syringe and needle he carefully began to draw up the clear drug as he spoke quietly to the moaning young man in the bed. "Kai should have been back by now. I was hoping that he could be with you while I am gone. I didn't want to leave you alone."

He hesitated a moment after reaching the correct dosage, glancing at the detective before he withdrew a little more of the drug into the needle. "I'm not sure how long I'm going to be so I'm giving you a little more morphine to keep you comfortable while I am gone." He told the injured man as he removed the needle from the vial and injected it into Danny's shoulder.

Finishing the injection, he returned the used needle back to its spot on the table and picked up the wet face cloth and began to wipe Danny's face. "Once I can start the antibiotics, you will begin to feel better." He promised softly, as Danny's agonized moans began to fade as the morphine began to take effect. "I'll try and be as quick as I can. Just rest. I promise the morphine I gave you will be enough to stop the pain until I get back!"

He stood and placed the cloth back onto the table and carefully covered Danny with the sheet, waiting until Danny relaxed and his breathing slowed as the detective slipped back into a pain free sleep, before he turned and left the room.

He walked outside and securely locked the cabin door; aware the Kai had a key should the young man return. With a glance around to satisfy himself that the area was deserted, Kalani walked to his car, opening the driver's door before he slipped inside.

The sensation of being watched disturbed him momentarily and he took a final intense look around at the darkened forestry that surround his home, trying to see into the darkness for any sign that he wasn't alone. Unable to detect anything amiss, he growled annoyed at his own paranoia and started the car, driving away from the cabin and Williams.

Xxxx

Frowning in annoyance as a shadow fell over his desk; Col Suttor looked up and gasped at the figure standing in the doorway. "What…what do you want?" He stuttered as he pushed fearfully away from his desk, desperately trying to get distance between him and the gun in the man's hand.

"I have a message for you, Suttor. You have upset the bosses in New York. They told you to sit tight and they would take care of you but you didn't trust them and now they feel you are a risk!"

"I had to take out a contract on the cop!" Suttor whimpered as the younger man stepped forward and casually screwed the silencer onto the end of the gun. "McGarrett told me that his boy's evidence would put me away for the rest of my life! I couldn't take that chance."

"Williams' evidence would have sent you down for a year or two during which we would have taken care of your business and made sure you lived a comfortable existence." The man informed the petrified crime boss quietly. "We told you our man in the D.A.'s office had a copy of what Williams was going to say but NO you had to get nervous and place a contract on Williams. Now you have this whole island crawling with aggravated cops and McGarrett has made it his own personal quest to bring the person responsible for the contract on his man to justice! It's only a matter of time before they trace the contract back to you, if they haven't already made the connection. The boss believes that you will crack as soon as McGarrett puts you under a little pressure and that's a risk that we don't need!"

"I wouldn't go against the family in New York. Tell them that I swear I'll keep my mouth shut." Suttor pleaded as he finally managed to stumble to his feet, "Please…"

His plea fell on deaf ears as the hired assassin raised the gun and fired three times. The bullets all struck the mafia boss in the centre of the chest and threw his body backwards where it hit the wall and fell lifelessly to the floor.

"Just too big of a risk, Suttor!" The gunman told the dead man before he turned and walked out of the office.

Standing in the shadows of the dark underbrush, McGarrett, Kono and Doc silently watched the tail lights of Kalani's car vanish into the darkness of the forest. Resisting the urge to rush to the front door, the men waited for the first surveillance team to radio that Kalani had passed the first checkpoint. It seemed to take hours before the confirmation finally crackled on the radio but the three men knew in reality only a few minutes had passed. McGarrett raised his radio to his lips and told the HPD officers at the back of the house to approach the cabin with extreme caution. He turned to Bergman and quietly reminded the physician to wait in the safety of the shadows for the all clear before he could enter the house.

Approaching the front door with their guns drawn, Kono and McGarrett took up positions on either side of the door waiting a few moments to give the HPD officers enough time to move into position around the back of the cabin before kicking the front door open and rushing into the cabin. The sound of splintering wood echoed from the back as the HPD officers broke the rear door opened and rushed into the cabin.

A quick search of the living room and kitchen revealed no suspects as McGarrett and Kono approached the closed bedroom door. Reaching for the door handle, McGarrett carefully twisted it and pushed the door open, glancing around the doorframe. The room, lit by only moonlight, appeared empty except for the still figure on the bed and McGarrett hit the light switch.

Kono gasped at the sight of his injured friend as he entered the room cautiously and checked the bathroom and closets were free of any hidden dangers.

Satisfied the cabin was secure, McGarrett rushed to Danno's side as he ordered Kono to signal to Doc and radio for the ambulance. His face paled as he found himself staring at the obvious injuries the young man had suffered. Both of Danno's legs were splinted and wrapped from hip to toes in blood stained bandages, his left arm was also splinted and strapped tightly to his bandaged chest, dark bruises stood out vividly on the pale face.

Steve knelt down beside the bed and gentle called Danno's name as he gently placed his hand on Danny's uninjured arm, alarmed at the amount of heat that radiated from his young detective. His soft command for Danny to open his eyes had no effect on the motionless young man and he glanced up worriedly as Bergman rushed into the room.

Steve quickly stood and moved out of Doc's way as Doc hurried to Danny's side and began a quick examination of the unconscious detective. Steve watched anxiously, vaguely aware of the sound of the ambulance siren as the vehicle pulled up close to the cabin or the arrival of the attendants as the rushed into the room, pushing a gurney that was carrying vital medical equipment.

Quickly checking for a pulse and breathing, Doc was alarmed at the extremely shallow breathing and the slow pulse rate. A quick glance at the bedside table instantly told him the probable cause. He quickly checked Danny's eyes, not surprised to find the pupils pinpointed and non-reactive to the light. Grabbing the pillow beneath Danny's head, he tossed it from the bed as he tilted Danny's head back and demanded an endotracheal tube from the ambulance assistant.

McGarrett felt his chest tighten in fear as he whispered, "Doc?"

"Kalani has overdosed him, probably with the morphine!" Doc answered distractedly as he quickly inserted the tube into Danny's mouth and grabbed an oxygen mask settling it over Danny's face as he began to gently squeeze and release the blue balloon attached to it, taking control over Danny's breathing. "The morphine has depressed his respiratory and cardiac systems, Steve, causing his breathing and heart rate to slow to almost nothing." He explained as he nodded to the attendant to take over the mask. "I can reverse the effects of the drug with another drug." He announced quietly as he quickly inserted an IV drip and injected a drug into the tubing, "But until it works we are going to have to help Danny breath."

"Auwe!" Kono murmured as he watched wide-eyed as the attendant continued to squeeze and release the balloon.

McGarrett swallowed down the bile that suddenly burned the back of his throat before he managed to whisper, "What about his other injuries?"

"I'm not sure Steve, Kalani seems to have done all he could for the obvious injuries, as for any internal ones, I suspect he has some bleeding into the tummy." Doc answered quietly as he carried out a quick examination. "There is nothing more I can do for him here. We need to get him to the hospital!"

McGarrett nodded silently as he stepped forward and helped Doc, Kono and the second attendant lift Danny across to the gurney, silently amazed that the movement did not interrupt the first attendant's rhythm on the balloon. Moving swiftly with the gurney out of the cabin, McGarrett issued orders to Kono to remain at the cabin and to have Che and the lab boys to go over the place with a fine toothcomb.

At Kono's unhappy nod of acknowledgement, Steve promised to keep him updated on Danny's condition as he rushed from the cabin.

The attendant rushed forward and opened the back doors of the ambulance which had closed while they were inside and froze at the sight of the gunman sitting casually inside the back cabin, his gun pointed at the group of men whom surrounded the critically ill man on the gurney. "Drop your weapons and move away from Williams!" He ordered as he cocked the gun and pointed it squarely at the attendant's chest. "You, push the gurney into the back and get in yourself!" He instructed the attendant quietly before looking at the other men and shouting, "Do it now or this guy is dead and Williams is next!"

The men all glanced towards McGarrett who nodded and instructed through clenched teeth, "Do what Hanson says." As he slowly lowered his weapon to the ground and raised his arms, stepping away from the gurney.

"But Steve, Danny needs…" Doc started to protest but his words were cut off.

"Just do what he says, Doc!" Steve ordered sternly again as he reached for Bergman's arm and pulled him back away from Danny's side.

Xxxx

"Five O – 3 this is mobile 5, suspect has just passed our location and is traveling southbound."

Chin Ho Kelly glanced across at Duke Lukela and with a tense silent nod, watched as the plain clothed HPD sergeant climbed out the car and wandered towards the parking lot across the road. A moment later a set of headlights came into view and Chin tensed as Kalani's car pulled into the parking lot, parking only yards away from where Duke now stood. Both officers held their breath, as the wanted man seemed to wait for several minutes before he finally emerged from the car and approached the waiting officer cautiously.

"Doctor Bergman?" Kalani asked quietly, stopping several feet away from the tall, gray haired Hawaiian man who stood silently in the shadows of a tree. At the man's nod, Kalani stepped closer, frowning as the man came into view. The stranger appeared much younger than Palani had imagined him to be on the phone but the urgency of his quest forced him to ignore his sudden distrust of the man. "I'm Doctor Kalani. Have you got the drugs that I requested for our friend?"

Picking up the mic, Chin whispered, "Okay everyone be ready to move as soon as Duke grabs him!"

Duke nodded silently again as he held out the small paper bag. As Kalani stepped forward and reached for the bag, Duke dropped it to the ground and quickly grabbed the wanted man's wrist, snapping a pair of handcuffs around it before he quickly spun the startled man around and reaching for his other arm.

Enraged at the deception, Kalani began to yell and struggle but was quickly subdued by several HPD officers, enabling Duke to finish handcuffing him as Chin informed him that he was under arrest for being an accessory to the kidnapping of a police officer.

As suddenly as Kalani had started to struggle, the fight suddenly went out of him as he turned towards Chin, with tears in his eyes. "Please, you can't do this!" He begged softly, "You don't have a clue of what you are doing. If I don't get back with this medication than Danny Williams is going to die. I didn't kidnap him; I'm trying to SAVE him! It was just an accident! Please, you have to let me go!"

"We know about the accident, Kalani, and we also know where you have been hiding Detective Williams. I can assure you that Danny Williams is receiving the correct medical care as we speak!" Chin told the prisoner softly as he and Duke led him towards the car. "If you wanted to save him as much as you claim than why didn't you get him some medical help instead of hiding him away?"

Kalani stopped walking and turned towards the Chinese detective. "It was an accident! I couldn't let Kai down when he came to me for help! I promised both him and Williams that I would do everything in my power to help and I promised Williams that no matter what happened, I wouldn't let him suffer! So please, you have to let me go! I have to get back to Williams! I have to get back to my patient! I have to…" Kalani began to yell as he tried to break free, kicking and struggling desperately as Chin, Duke and several HPD officers struggled to subdue him and place him into the back of a waiting police car.

Forced back away from the gurney, Doc watched helplessly as the young attendant pulled Danny into the back of the ambulance and closed the doors. He turned to protest at McGarrett for giving in to the gunman's demands without a fight but was silenced as Steve lifted the radio he carried to his lips and demanded. "Charley, can you see into the ambulance?"

The radio crackled before a disembodied voice answered. "That's affirmative, Steve."

"Joey Hanson has taken Danno and an attendant hostage. He's wearing a blue shirt. If you get the chance take him out!"

"Will do, Steve!" Charley acknowledged before he placed the radio down and picked up his Browning sniper rifle, carefully cocking it before lifting it to his shoulder.

Hanson smiled down at the unconscious patient. "Well Williams, your boss made it easy for me to find you. I must thank McGarrett next time I see him!" The gunman laughed as he gently rubbed his gun against the detective's face before he turned and snapped at the frightened attendant. "Do as I say and I might let you live! You're going to climb into the front and drive us out of here!" Grabbing at the attendant's arm, Joey stood as he attempted to pull the man to his feet.

Looking through the sights of his sniper rifle, Charley Takahashi quickly focused through the windshield and the glass partition within the ambulance on the dark haired figure darting within the vehicle. It took him less than a minute to confirm his target and squeeze the trigger. He watched as his target jerked from the impact of the bullet to his back and fell out of sight before he lowered his rifle and picked back up the radio. "Got him, Steve!"

Lee Freeman heard the loud crack; a brief millisecond before the glass partition in the ambulance shattered and the gunman was thrown forward, crashing to the ground. Lee stared in shock at the growing red splotch that covered the man's back, not quite understanding what had just happened as the ambulance doors suddenly opened and Bergman and the dark headed detective rushed inside.

McGarrett glanced towards Lee as he grabbed the fallen weapon and passed it out of the gunman's potential reach to someone outside the vehicle, "You okay?" He asked.

At the attendant's shaking nod, McGarrett turned his attention to the downed gunman for signs of life before he announced quietly. "He's dead." He straightened up and stepped across to the gurney watching anxiously as Bergman carried out a quick examination of the critically ill detective strapped onto it. "Doc?"

"He's alive!" Was the doctor's succinct answer as Bergman quickly reached for the resuscitator mask and again began to force air into Danny's lungs. "He needs to be in the hospital!"

McGarrett swallowed the lump of fear that threatened to choke him as he watched the doctor's actions before he quickly turned to the second attendant. "Can you drive this thing?"

The attendant glanced through the shattered petition at spider web cracked windshield and nodded. "If you don't mind about some free air-conditioning after I clear the glass!" He answered.

After quick glimpse towards Bergman for any objection and receiving none, McGarrett nodded his approval, abruptly ordering several officers to help clear the glass before he turned his attention back to Kono reiterating his orders for Kono to take charge of the scene and again promising the unhappy detective to keep him updated on Danno's condition.

Kono sighed as he closed the back of the ambulance and watched it speed away with a police escort. He turned and instructed the remaining officers to search for Hanson's car and to seal off the crime scene.

Charley Takahashi joined him a moment later and assisted him in the clean up. The body of the gunman would need to be secured later in the ambulance. Police protocol had needed to wait while the rush to get Danny the medical assistance he desperately required took precedence.

Xxxx

Pacing the small waiting room, McGarrett glanced up at the clock. It had been almost two hours since Danno had been stabilized enough in the Emergency Room to be rushed into surgery. Bergman had promised to update him as soon as Dan was in recovery. McGarrett turned and stared out of the window at the dawn that just breaking over the city, watching the new light brighten the world outside while his world within these walls were still shadowed by the real fear of losing his closest friend.

Hearing the waiting room door open behind him, McGarrett spun around hoping to see Bergman standing there.

Chin saw the fleeting look of disappointment and fear vanish quickly behind the professional façade that his boss kept in place for all but his closest friend. He sighed as he realized that Steve had been waiting for someone else - probably Bergman to update him on Danny's condition.

"Danno's in surgery. He's in critical condition. The operation is extremely risky given his weakened condition but they had to operate to repair a tear in his liver." Steve answered the unspoken question quietly, "There is also a chance that he might lose both his legs."

Chin swallowed hard as he tried to stop the tears that burned the back of his eyes from falling. Danny had to make a full recovery from this. It just didn't seem fair for him – them – to endure all that they had to lose him now

He took a large breath as he decided to concentrate on the report he had to give. "Kalani is in custody, Steve, but I had him transferred across to the psychiatric ward. He really lost it when we wouldn't allow him back to his cabin to treat Danny and when he was told that Kai had been killed he went ballistic. Started smashing up the cell and trying to harm himself. Was yelling Kai's death was his punishment for not keeping his promise to treat Danny! I doubt that he will ever face court."

Steve nodded disinterestedly at the madman's reaction. The man had almost killed Danno with an overdose in his insane treatment.

"What about Suttor?" Steve asked softly, going through the motions of police work although his heart and mind were with his detective in the operating room.

"Kono managed to wake up Stewart and got a warrant for his arrest." Chin glanced down at his watch, "Kono and Duke should be at Suttor's office now making the arrest. We're charging him with Conspiratory to Murder a Police Officer, two counts of Murder One for the death of Ryan and his father and One Count of Attempted Murder for Ryan's mother for starters but I know that you will like to add to that!'

McGarrett nodded and turned back to the door as it opened and the exhausted physician entered, tiredly removing his surgical cap.

"Doc?" Steve asked anxiously.

Doc smiled, "We managed to repair the tear and stop the internal bleeding. Danny's critical but stable. He's weak but he should be fine!"

"What about his legs?"

"Kalani might have actually done more good than harm Steve. The legs were badly broken but Kalani managed to set the bones perfectly and clean the wounds out well. There is a definite infection in wounds on both legs but it should clear with antibiotics." Doc grinned as he reached for the coffee pot and poured a hot cup of coffee, taking a small sip before he continued. "Danny is in for a long and painful recovery, Steve. His left arm, several ribs and both his legs are broken. His left shoulder is severely bruised and so is his left lung. He also has a moderate concussion." Doc listed, "We also have him on a ventilator to help him breath until the morphine is out of his system but I must admit, Steve. Danny is a very lucky young man in more than one way!"

At Steve's questioning look, Doc admitted, "I thought that Danny was a dead man when that gunman pulled him into the ambulance. I honestly thought that you had lost your mind when you did nothing to stop him." Doc chuckled, "But I should have kept the faith!"

"I knew that Hanson was a risk, Doc, so I placed sharp shooters around the cabin." Steve said quietly before he brought the conversation back to the subject he wanted it to be. "Can I see Danno?"

Doc nodded his head and smiled. "They should have him settled in ICU. I'll take you there now."

"Thanks!" Steve breathed quietly and the three men headed out of the door.

As they began to head down the corridor, a nursed hurried after them, "Excuse me but Detective Kelly I have an urgent phone call for you at my desk. A Detective Kalakua."

Chin thanked her before he turned to the other two men. "You go ahead, Steve, I'll visit Danny later after I talk to Kono."

He watched as McGarrett and Bergman stepped into the elevator before he turned and walked back to the nurse's desk and picked up the phone. "Kelly "

He listened closely as Kono informed him about the discovery of Suttor's body and the discovery of a typed note that claimed Suttor was killed for the unauthorized contract on the cop. With an unconvinced grunt, Chin ordered more security at the hospital for Danno's protection until they could verify that the contract had been withdrawn. After giving Kono the latest update on Danny's condition, he promised the Hawaiian detective that he would attend the new crime scene to give him a hand to wrap it up so both detectives could visit their recovering friend.

McGarrett stood at the side of the bed, staring at the pale face. He tried to ignore the mechanical hiss of the ventilator and the soft beeps of the heart monitor as he continued to study his friend. Both legs and his arm were in heavy white casts and his ribs were bandaged but even the whiteness of the bandages and casts were not even close to the whiteness of Danny's face.

McGarrett gently placed his hand on the top of Danny's curls as he leaned close to Danny's ear and whispered. "All you have to do is rest and get better, Aikane. We found you and now you are back with your Ohana where you belong."

Pulling up a chair, he ignored the nurse's glare as he settled in for his sentinel watch over his closest friend

EPILOGUE-

Steve McGarrett entered the hospital room and smiled at the sight of his recovering detective flirting openly with the young Polynesian nurse. Watching his young friend, McGarrett found it almost hard to believe that a week ago Danny was fighting for his very life.

Bergman had assured him that although Danny still had a long recovery time ahead of him, he would fully recover. It had been close this time, too close! A car of drunken youths, his own impulsive behavior had almost cost his friend his life and had resulted in several other deaths. It would take a long time for his own guilt to fade away, if it ever did. Yes it was definitely too close this time!

"Steve!"

Danny's excited voice broke like sunshine through the black clouds of what might have been that occupied his thoughts. He blinked and looked towards the young man in the bed, his smile widening as Danny asked his predictable question.

"Are you here to spring me? Bergman is trying to keep me here for another week but we both know that I'm well enough to leave now!"

McGarrett laughed as he walked to the bed and gently teased, "I'm not going against Doc's recommendations this time, Aikane, at least while you are here I know precisely where you are!"

The smile on Danny's face faded as he turned towards the window and whispered, "I don't remember much of the accident, Steve," he admitted quietly, "But I do remember thinking that somehow you would find where I was!"

McGarrett lightly squeezed his friend's uninjured shoulder he smiled, "It was you that help us locate where Kalani and Kai had you hidden. We were still putting things together when you convinced Kalani to ring. Even injured and drugged, you still kept your head and thought like a cop! That's more than I did, Danno!" His smile was replaced by a look of guilt and regret as he quietly admitted to his closest friend the danger he had placed him in. "I totally lost it, Aikane, when we discovered you were missing. I truly believed that Suttor was responsible so I went and rattled his cage. "He swallowed as Danny slowly turned his head back towards him and listened as he rushed on."I pushed Suttor too hard, panicked him into placing a contract on your head. A contract that Hanson nearly succeeded in carrying out!' He felt the hot tears as they began to fall as he whispered, "I'm sorry Aikane!"

Reaching over, Danny lightly squeezed Steve's arm as he whispered, "Steve you are the one that saved my life and for that I am grateful. You knew of the danger and made sure that you had sharpshooters surrounding the cabin to keep me safe from Hanson. If it wasn't for you, I would have died in the back of the ambulance." Danny grinned and gave a light chuckle, "As for rattling Suttor's cage, it shows that I'm not the only impulsive one on the team!"

McGarrett smiled at the light tease as he wiped his face. He felt the weight of the world lift from his shoulders from the few words of forgiveness from his friend.

Sensing McGarrett's mood lighten, Danny's eyes twinkled in mischief. "So are you going to help spring me or what?' He questioned his boss again.

PAU


End file.
